Abused
by Axrat
Summary: Riku went from best friend to school bully in a few days. When Sora discovers that it is a result of his abusive step father, he is determined to help Riku through it. Can Sora pull Riku and his sister through? Not if Roxas has any say in the matter.
1. Chapter 1

Author's notes: I know, another KH fic. I'm so predictable. I did this spur of the moment, so it may not be my best. This is months after KH2. Everything else is explained, I think.

**Abused**

"Sora!"

Sora and Kairi turned around, and moaned. Riku. The silver haired teenager used to be their friend, until he just snapped. In a matter of days he became the new school bully.

"Don't go to any balloon parties!"

"He's a humanoid echidna." Commented one of the kids in Riku's gang to add to Riku's insult. Kairi moaned, grabbing Sora's arm and turning him away, before walking off before something like last time happened.

Last time, both Sora and Riku were nearly expelled due to a fight they'd gotten into. The only reason Kairi didn't kill them was because they were smart enough not to use the Keyblades. Both had a two week suspension. Sora had argued that Riku had provoked him, and Riku seemed to get sympathy by the teachers and staff. No one knew why, though.

"My mother's getting remarried this weekend." Sora remembered Riku telling them, only a week before he had turned into the school bully.

"I didn't know she was divorced in the first place." Kairi commented.

"She divorced my father shortly after we left the isles for the first time." He replied.

That didn't have anything to do with it, though. Riku never said anything about his new step dad or anything else. It wasn't like he was on good terms with his dad, so what was the problem?

Much to Sora's relief, the bell rang for class. Since Riku was a year older he couldn't bother them during class time.

"Math?" Kairi asked Sora, who nodded in a bored fashion.

"Of course. We've always got math at the same time on Thursdays." He replied.

"Lighten up, after math is lunch, then sport." Kairi encouraged.

Both were in their school uniforms, Kairi in the girl's blue skirt and white shirt while Sora was in the boy's blue shorts and white shirt.

"Ever wonder what happened to Riku?" Sora asked her out of the blue. "I mean, one minute he's our friend, and the next he's a jerk to us and all of our friends. Heck, he nearly got into a fight with Tidus yesterday."

"I've been researching that for our SOSE assignment." Kairi started. "'What causes teens to snap?' One thing I read said that it usually starts with things going on at home, or when someone just wants to fit in. After the whole Keyblade thing, I wouldn't be surprised if Riku feels like a reject."

"But he's not the Keyblade Master. Sure he wields Way to the Dawn but-" Sora was cut off.

"Sora! Think! Riku gave into the darkness. How do you think that makes him feel?" Kairi snapped. Sora shut up; he hadn't thought of that.

"Right." He stopped at his lockers and grabbed his books for his next class, as Kairi continued off to her locker. He grabbed all his books for math class, and headed off quickly to the math room. Unfortunately for him, Riku happened to be hanging in the direction of Sora's next class, and pushed Sora onto the ground, causing his books to scatter.

"Loser!" Riku yelled back at him as he and his friends laughed, walking away. Sora growled, collecting his books and getting to his feet.

"Jerk." He growled under his breath.

Half way through math class, Sora realised that he had forgotten his calculator. He asked the teacher if he could go to his locker to get it, then quickly left when given permission.

He was surprised to see the school counsellor walking down the hall, Riku following him. Sora ducked behind the corner and watched them.

"So, Riku. How're things at home for you?"

"Crap."

"I suspected much. Things haven't been easy on you since your mother died."

Sora blinked. Riku's mother was dead? That would explain Riku's sudden change, if Kairi's research was true.

"Rachael hasn't been taking it well."

"How is your sister, that aside?"

"Can't really tell. She spends most of her time at home, locked up in her room. She wouldn't notice if the house caught on fire."

"Are you still hanging out with your old friends, Riku?"

No response.

"I see. Sorry to hear that. You heard from…"

They walked off around the corner, and their voiced died out. Sora was still trying to comprehend what he just heard. He ran off to his locker, only to find that his calculator wasn't there.

"Riku." He moaned, slamming his locker shut and rushing back to class, explaining that he couldn't find it. After returning to his seat he whispered something to Kairi. "I just saw Riku. I'll tell you about it later."

--

"You're kidding!" Kairi exclaimed. Sora had just told her everything he had heard when he saw Riku during math class.

"No, I'm not. From what I heard the teacher talking about, the counsellor talks to Riku on a regular basis." Sora replied.

"Think he's spilled about the Keyblades?" Kairi asked in an undertone.

"If he has the counsellor probably thinks that he's delusional. He'd need a bunch of Heartless and Nobodies to suddenly show up to prove it. Plus, he'd have to call Way to the Dawn and have me call Kingdom Key."

"If Heartless attacked he wouldn't have to ask. You'd just follow your heart and act." Kairi commented. Sora nodded.

"Probably."

It was only a few months after they finally all came home together. They had all been enrolled in school on the mainland together, but now it was becoming an annoyance. The bell rang to end lunch, so Sora and Kairi parted ways, headed to their individual sports.

Sora just couldn't, no matter how hard he tried, stop thinking about Riku. Why hadn't he told him or Kairi, instead of taking it out on them? They could've helped him before it got this bad. When sport was finally over, Sora met up with Kairi and continued talking about it, before saying their goodbyes and heading home.

"Sora! Could you go to the shops and get some milk?" He heard his mother call from the kitchen. "Sora?"

"Yes, mother." Sora sighed. Why couldn't his younger sister, Sara, go get milk for a change? He changed out of his uniform, slipping his normal clothes on and heading out the door, only stopping to get money from his mother.

He sped walked away from the house, remembering that Riku's house just happened to be on the way to the shops. Great, not. He couldn't seem to get away from his former friend.

He paused near Riku's house. Screaming, yelling… where was it coming from? The sun was setting over the horizon, but Sora stopped anyway. Wait… was the screaming coming from…


	2. Chapter 2

**Abused**

Sora clasped his hands over his mouth in surprise. "Riku…" He whispered, his deep blue eyes were wide in shock.

"Stop! Stop it!"

That was a girl's scream… the Rachael girl that Sora had heard Riku and the counsellor talking about? It was possible. He wanted to bust inside and see what was going on, but he chose to listen in a little while.

"Let her go!"

That was unmistakable. That was Riku yelling at someone.

"Back down, boy! Maybe this'll teach you respect!"

There was a blood-curdling scream of pain, and Sora couldn't hold himself back anymore. He glanced at the house. A window was beside the door, half open, with blinds down and closed.. He darted up to the door and tried opening it. Locked. He couldn't bring out the Keyblade, not now. He then noticed the window, and tried opening it more. Much to his relief, it opened further, and he slipped in.

He forced the blinds out of the way, finding himself in a hall way. The walls were covered in dents and marks, while there were even holes in places.

"Rachael! Run!"

Riku again. That came from Sora's left, so he darted in that direction.

He came out into the main room. The carpet was in worse condition than the walls. A dog wouldn't want to sleep on the floor it was that bad. From this, Sora guessed that the rest of the house was a mess.

The scene in front of him hit Sora in the heart. A man with dark hair, who obviously wasn't Riku's father, was standing over Riku, who was on the ground, his entire expression screwed up in pain. The silver haired teenager's hair was a mess, and he was covered in scrapes, scratches, bruises and whatnot. The man was wearing a grey hooded jacket, and baggy rap pants along with black army style boots, and his hands were shoved in his pockets. A TV lie broken in the corner, still plugged into the outlet.

Riku barely cracked his eyes opened, and noticed Sora standing there. He glanced up at the man standing above him. "You're dead now." He growled. The man turned around in confusion, and when he spotted Sora, he laughed.

"This shrimp? He couldn't harm a fly."

"I've killed people more threatening than you." Sora growled, throwing his right hand out in front of him, prepared to call Kingdom Key if the need arose.

"A little murderer, huh?"

"No worse than you." Riku growled. Suddenly, someone had grabbed a hold of his arm and had pulled him to his feet, starting to run off with him.

But Riku collapsed with a cry of pain, before realising who had grabbed his arm suddenly; Sora.

"Riku, get up!" Sora urged.

"I… I can't." Riku shook his head. The man was simply laughing his head off at them.

"You're pathetic, kid."

Sora growled. He pulled Riku up again and put the silver haired teenager's arm around his shoulders to support him. "Let's go, Riku."

Sora started off at a quick walk, pretty much pulling Riku along. They came to a staircase, which Riku told him to go up, then into the first room on the left and close the door. Sora did so, finding that he ended up in an empty bedroom with only two piles of folded blankets on the ground. Riku glanced back at the door and locked it, before motioning to a built-in closet with a normal door that you'd see on a bedroom, not one you'd see on a closet. It even came complete with a lock.

"Rachael, you okay?"

"Riku?" The door opened just a crack. "Who's he?"

"A friend. He's going to help us. Open the door so we can hide with you." The door swung open completely.

A ten year old girl with long, silver hair was sitting there, hugging her knees. She was shaking slightly in fear, and her eyes, the same colour as Riku's, never looked up from the floor.

The closet was fairly small, probably only five feet tall, a yard deep and a yard and a half along the back. It would barely fit him, Riku and Rachael. It was also a foot off the ground, so it was a bit of a step.

Sora helped Riku sit in the closet beside Rachael, noticing that he didn't like moving his left knee much. Sora didn't question it now, simply sat down the other end of the closet, pulling his knees close to his chest.

"Anyone got a cell phone?" He asked quietly as he shut the door, locking it. Riku reached into his pocket and passed a phone which was covered in black marker.

"Here." He offered, knowing why Sora wanted the phone; to call for help. Sora took the phone, and started dialling the number for emergency. "Why did you come and help me?" Riku asked him.

"Because," Sora replied as he finished dialling and started raising the phone to his ear, "you're still my friend, no matter what." Rachael didn't seem to understand, but Riku smiled and nodded.

"Thanks, Sora."

The Keyblade Master didn't reply, since the call had gone through. "Hello?"

"_Destiny Isle emergency services, what is your emergency?" _

"I'm currently locked inside a closet with my friend hiding-"

"From our abusive step father down stairs." Riku cut him off.

"From their abusive step father." Sora finished.

"_What is your current location?" _

Sora new Riku's address off by heart. He had to remember it when he was younger for when his mother would bring him by, because she never made the effort to remember it. He recited it to the person on the other end.

"_Do you need me to send medical crews?" _

Sora glanced at Riku, and then continued. "Yeah, my friend can't stand without help. It might be a good idea."

"_Alright. I've sent the police down and a medical crew to have a look at your friend. They should be arriving soon. Just sit tight until they do." _

"Thanks." Sora leaned back against the wall. After awhile of silence, sirens rang out in the background. "I hear the sirens now."

"_Alright. I'm going to let them handle it now." _

"Thanks. Bye." Sora wasn't sure what else to say before the phone line went dead, and he hung up before passing the cell phone back to Riku. They heard a series of yelling coming from outside the room; apparently Riku and Rachael's step father had gotten that far before the cops showed up.

A long silence followed, before a loud click rang out.

"Hey, kids! Where are you?"

Sora reached up and unlocked the door, pushing it open and stepping down onto the floor.

"Right here."

Standing in the middle of the room was one of the DIPD, Destiny Isles Police Department, in a black uniform. His hair was messy, a result from a resent struggle.

"Ah. You three okay?"

"I am, but," Sora glanced back at Riku, "he can't stand on his own."

"Do we need to get the paramedics up here to see him, or can we get him down stairs?" Asked the cop.

"I'll try to get down there, if Sora helps me." Riku didn't even look up as he spoke. Sora nodded.

"Of course."

"I'm going to stay here for awhile." Rachael spoke up.

"Join us soon, okay, Rache?" Riku smiled at her, actually smiled. She nodded, returning the smile. Sora grabbed a hold of Riku's arm, helping him up, supporting his left side. "Let's go." Sora nodded, starting to walk out of the room, followed by the police officer. Rachael stayed behind, not moving from the closet.

They slowly went down the stairs with much difficulty, and Sora needed the cop's help to get Riku down. By the time they had managed, both Riku and Sora seemed exhausted.

They went outside. Sora spotted two cop cars, in the back of one was Riku's step father. Also there was an ambulance. Two medics in white clothing walked over and helped Sora lie Riku down on a stretcher, so it was easier for them to have a look at his leg.

Sora sat on the door step, arms crossed. After awhile one of the medics walked over to him to let him know what had happened to Riku.

"His kneecap's been shattered. Did you happen to see what happened?" Sora shook his head.

"No. I rushed in after I heard Riku yell out in pain."

"The pain was probably from his kneecap shattering. We're going to take him to the hospital to get his leg put in a cast later, after the police are done questioning him." The medic then walked away.

"Perfect." Sora muttered sarcastically as a news crew pulled up. He rolled his eyes as the camera man and interviewer stepped out of the van. "Don't they have more important stories to cover?"

The camera man set up near the cop car which held Riku's step father, then the interviewer readied herself, fixing her brown hair last-minute.

"Three, two," The camera man cut off, giving hand signals. The interviewer started her speech, and Sora walked over to Riku, who was sitting on the back of the ambulance, which was on the other side of the cop car.

"Great, we're going to be famous." He commented sarcastically. "Don't we get enough credit in other worlds?"

"Hmm, you maybe." Riku crossed his arms.

"Hey, Xemnas would've killed me if you hadn't been there." Sora told him.

"True." Riku nodded. "I really wish I could summon Way to the Dawn and heal this, but if I did people would get suspicious." He sighed. "Kind of sucks, being able to heal yourself but not being able to at the same time." Sora nodded in understanding. "I wonder where we'd be if the Keyblade never chose you."

"Not so loud!" Sora snapped.

"Sor-ry, Keyblade Master!" Riku hissed in response.

"We can't have people here knowing about that. We get enough fame in other worlds." Sora looked down at the ground. "I wonder how King Mickey is…"

"I've been thinking the same thing."

"And Donald and Goofy… And the Restoration Committee."

"Yeah." Riku nodded. "It's been so long since we've seen them, it seems."

"It's really only been a few months." Sora commented.

"Sora!"

Suddenly someone wrapped their arms around Sora's neck. It only took Sora a moment to realise who it was.

"Kairi! What're you doing here?" He asked.

"I saw you on the news." Kairi stated, releasing him. She turned to Riku and wrapped her arms around his neck. "It's good to have you back." She said before stepping away from him. He gave her a smile.

A scream rang from Riku's house, and a couple cops ran inside, but quickly came back out.

"A fire's started up!" One exclaimed.

"Call the fire brigade!"

"Rachael!" Riku exclaimed worriedly.

"I'll find her." Sora turned and rushed inside.

"Kid, no!" Several people yelled at him, but he ignored him, yanking his jacket off and covering his nose and mouth as he ran inside.

The temperature changed instantly. Obviously the fire had started quickly, because most of the main room was already engulfed. He darted for the stairs, the smoke clouding his vision and making his eyes sting. He had to find Rachael for Riku. He darted up the stairs, forgetting one thing.

Smoke rises.

"Great." He breathed. He through the door to the room he and Riku left Rachael in then slammed it shut behind him.

The ten year old was standing in a corner, and watched Sora as he entered. Smoke was coming in from under the door, plus Sora had let a lot in when he entered. He grabbed a hold of her.

"I'm going to get you out of here." He told her.

Suddenly, a loud bang and the whoosh of fire rang out, and the door erupted into flames. Obviously a small explosion had caused an inferno to erupt through the house. A small pang of memories ran through Sora, making him feel suddenly filled with sorrow.

"We won't be getting out that way," he said as he opened the window and picked her up. He sat on the window sill, holding onto the top of the window. Riku and Kairi were watching from below worriedly. The news crew was filming him.

"Sora! If you drop her I'll kill you personally!" Riku threatened.

"Kid! Wait there for the fire brigade!" Someone yelled up to him. Sora shook his head.

"They'll never be able to get in here! It's an inferno in the house!" He yelled back down. He glanced up. Sora pulled himself and Rachael up so they were upside down on the side of the house. He suddenly had everyone's attention. "Rachael, hang on." He whispered to her, pulling her closer.

Suddenly, Sora did a black flip and fell to the ground below and, much to the surprise of everyone there…

Landed on his feet.

"That," Sora glanced up at the window, "brings back memories." He was referring to the countless jumps he'd made during his journeys to other worlds. Plus Roxas' memories, of course, including the running up a skyscraper stunt. He put Rachael on the ground. "You okay?" Rachael nodded. Strangely enough, she was smiling. She then ran over to Riku excitedly.

"Show off!" Riku yelled at him teasingly.

"Who? Me or Roxas?" Sora yelled back with a laugh. It was nice. Riku was back on his side. Having the silver haired teenager's jokes being fired at him again was nice.

"Both of you!"

"Excuse me!"

Sora turned to see the interviewer talking to him.

"Could you spare a moment?"

Sora shrugged. _Do I have a choice? _

"What drove you to enter a building that you knew was on fire?"

"I couldn't leave that girl to die. It's just something I've been doing since…" Sora paused, "since I disappeared over a year ago with my friends."

"That's right." The interviewer nodded. "How did you pull that stunt?"

"…That is a long story. If I told you the whole thing we'd probably be here next week." Sora shrugged. He continued to answer questions for awhile, before returning to Riku and Kairi.

"Don't they have better stories to cover?" He moaned.

"I doubt it." Kairi replied. "Nothing ever happens here."

"You've got that right." Sora and Riku said in unison.

"Except when we were first attacked by Heartless." Sora corrected.

"Except that." Kairi nodded.

Three friends joking around optimistically in a very dark situation, it couldn't get much better, could it? It seemed like it would be smooth sailing for awhile.

But it would really be a rough roller coaster ride for Riku and Sora.


	3. Chapter 3

**Abused**

"Sora!"

"Ma'am, we're going to have to ask you to stay back." One of the cops was restraining back a woman with shoulder length brown hair. She replied with glaring at him defiantly. Sora sighed.

"I don't know her." He muttered. Truth was, it was his mother. He guessed she had seen his stunt on the news. Don't you _hate _live TV?

"I think she's going to end up in trouble." Kairi whispered to him.

"So?" Sora shrugged. "That's her problem, not mine. She'll have to deal with the stunts I pull from now on. I'm sick and tired of having to hide my abilities from the world." Riku snorted in amusement.

"Heh, mind if I tag along on your rebellion?" He asked. "Start by showing off at school tomorrow?"

"I was planning on that anyway." Sora shrugged.

"You two are unbelievable…" Kairi shook her head.

"Your point?" Riku and Sora asked her in unison.

All it took was a few minutes and the three were instant friends again. Weird, huh? Sora and Kairi had been having problems with Riku for a few months now… and suddenly it all cleared up. Riku was amazed that Kairi and Sora had forgiven him so quickly, while Sora insisted that Riku had always been his friend.

"Let me through!" Snapped Sora's mother.

"She won't shut up until you do." Sora said in a monotone. "You might as well let her through." She seemed surprised by his dull tone.

"Sora?"

"Roxas."

"Huh?"

Riku snorted to hold back a laugh. Kairi shook her head with a smirk.

"Sora?" His mother repeated.

"XIII."

"It was funnier the first time. Now it's just getting old." Riku commented.

"Dang." Sora snapped his fingers.

"You know her?" The cop asked Sora.

"She's my annoying mother, yes." Sora nodded matter-of-factily. "She probably freaked out when she saw my stunt on TV. I've done more impressive."

"The Nobody or the Somebody?" Riku called up to him teasingly.

"Shut up." Sora laughed. "Both of us."

"Name one thing _you've _done."

"Killed a thousand Heartless singled-handedly." No one would understand what he was saying, besides Riku and Kairi.

"Is that all?" Riku seemed unimpressed.

"If I mentioned everything I doubt anyone would bother talking to me."

Riku rolled his eyes. "Half people don't even know what a 'Heartless' is. Or a Keyblade, or a Nobody for that matter."

All of the adults seemed to cast each other nervous glances.

"Did you mention… Heartless?" Asked the interviewer.

"And Keyblades too!" Exclaimed a cop.

"How do you kids know about that?" Exclaimed Sora's mother. Sora glanced back at Riku, who nodded. Both raised their right hands out in front of them, summoning their Keyblades. Everyone gasped in wonder.

"And I'm the Seventh Princess of Heart." Kairi announced.

"I though the children were safe…"

"But we knew that as long as Ansem lived, the Heartless would find them." One of the cops sighed. "Wait… how do you spell 'Roxas'?"

"R-O-X-A-S, why?" Sora asked.

"If you rearrange the remaining letters, Sora, you get S-O-R-A." Riku told him. Sora let out a whistle.

"Organization XIII's naming system makes sense. I'm shocked." He commented. A small pang of amusement welled up inside him. "Wait… what about Namine?" He glanced at Kairi.

"Namine wasn't part of the Organization, remember?" Kairi replied.

"Hey, if both you kids have Keyblades, who's the Keyblade Master?" Asked the interviewer. Sora nervously raised his hand.

"Heh heh… Hello?"

So their secret was out. FINALLY! They could do what they wanted! No more keeping the whole Keyblade thing a secret! Wait a minute…

"How did you guys know?" Sora asked.

"The Heartless War in Radiant Garden years ago. Ansem came to us for help." Answered Sora's mother. "Everyone who was old enough to remember it knows about Heartless and Nobodies. King Mickey… I wonder what happened to him…"

"The King?" Sora, Riku and Kairi instantly perked up.

"This has to be kept quiet. Only these kids can know about this." One of the cops declared. "It was fate that taught them about it, so let's leave it. This was all banned to be taught to children for a reason. We want the whole story on everything you kids have been through."

Riku moaned. "I really don't want to relive that…"

"Neither do we, Riku." Sora glanced back at him. He understood how much harder it would be for Riku, with the whole giving into the darkness thing. Sora's left hand clenched into a fist as he grit his teeth.

"Sora?" Kairi asked him. Sora didn't respond right away.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry." He unclenched his fist and let it fall to his side.

"You alright?" Riku asked him. Sora glanced back and nodded as if nothing was happening.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" He smiled. Sora was really starting to hate Roxas' influence on him. It was making him less him, even though he was 'still all you' according to Riku. That was false. He and Roxas seemed to have that personality that didn't get along with itself.

Sora's hand suddenly strayed to his necklace, pendant, whatever you wanted to call it. He yanked it off his neck suddenly and held it up in front of his face. Kingdom Key disappeared, and Sora climbed into the ambulance to be away from the world.

"Let's hurry up." He said in a monotone.

"Sora?" Riku blinked in confusion.

"Kid's right, we should get going." One of the medics commented. Rachael climbed into the ambulance quickly and helped Riku into one of the seats, and he ended up beside Sora. Kairi got in after that, sitting across from them.

The medics wordlessly closed the door, and soon after the engine started and they were moving.

"Sora?" Riku glanced at the brunette. Sora showed no signs of response, which Riku found weird. "Sora!" He repeated, louder this time.

_He's always pushed you. You've always been rivals. He said it himself. You don't need him! He's been teasing you for the last few months! Why help him? You have your own problems. _

_Get out of my head! _

"Sora!" Riku repeated, even louder. Sora was jolted from his thoughts, and glanced back at Riku, before he turned away, giving him the cold shoulder. "What's your problem?"

"It has a name."

"Roxas." Kairi looked at the ground. "Roxas' memories are keeping you from your own life, your own freedom." No response. "That's it, isn't it?" Sora nodded.

"Sora…" Riku put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Don't let Roxas get in your way. Let him think what he wants to." Riku knew that Roxas had a sour taste about him, ever since the skyscraper battle. Then there was the virtual Twilight Town to make things worse. Sheesh, for not having emotions, Nobodies could sure hold a grudge. Riku pondered what would've happened if he hadn't been wearing a blindfold in that fight.

"You know, when you can tell everyone about a secret, then you have to keep it quiet, the frustration builds up. Then suddenly you can tell the world, and it's just an explosion." Sora commented. Riku nodded.

"I know the feeling. I know the feeling."


	4. Chapter 4

Author's notes: Wow… I really like reader traffic. I found out that there are people reading this from the US, the UK, Canada, Germany, AUS, Spain, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Finland, Ireland, Estonia, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Brazil, Sweden, Malaysia and the Philippines. No joke.

**Abused**

Sora glanced at the necklace in his hand again, ignoring the stares of his friends as they wondered what was going through his head.

They were sitting in one of the rooms in the local hospital. Riku had been given crutches and a brace put on his leg. Apparently his kneecap had been broken, not shattered, fortunately enough for him. Every half-healed wound and scar Riku had hidden with his school uniform every time Sora and Kairi had seen him had been noted by the doctor, so that the full extent of his abuse could be acknowledged. A couple of times Riku had pointed out scars that were left over from his time in the Darkness. Those were mostly from Castle Oblivion onwards, though, after he had left the Dark for the in between. The large majority of his injuries and half-healed wounds were given to him since he had returned.

The silver haired teenager was sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, watching Kairi as she paced back and forth in front of Sora, who was sitting on a couch with uncomfortable green cushions, never taking her eyes off of him. You could tell that she was worried about him, but, Riku guessed, she had all right to be. The smell of bleach was everywhere, driving him crazy. As soon as the doctor was finished looking at Rachael's various injuries, they'd leave, but who knew when that would be. It had taken two hours already, where it had only taken them half an hour to check on Riku.

_Rachael… Roxas, do you know her? _

It was the first time Sora had tried to have an actual conversation with Roxas since they had merged, but he was curious as to why Rachael seemed so familiar. It was like when he had first seen Twilight Town, and met Hayner, Pence and Olette.

_Nope. _

_Come on, Roxas. _

_I don't know her! My guess is as good as your's, Sora. _

Roxas didn't sound amused. He sounded ticked off, if nothing else. It seemed like he was hiding something from Sora, though.

Everyone looked up in surprise as the doctor, a slim man in his late twenties with light hair, walked into the room and glanced over at Riku.

"She's not cooperating with us. She won't even let us touch her. Riku, would you be able to talk to her?" The doctor asked him. Riku nodded, grabbing the silver crutches he had been given as he slowly slid off the bed, landing on his good leg. Sora stood up, and Kairi walked over to help Riku, since he was a bit unsteady on the crutches still. Sora tagged along in the back as they left the room, following the doctor down the hallways. They stopped at room '15', and were led inside.

Rachael was sitting on the hospital bed, hugging her knees and laying her chin on them. Her eyes were distant, as if she was lost in thought. Riku went over to her, and, standing on his good leg, sat the crutches off to the side and pulled himself onto the bed to sit on the edge of it beside her. He reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, but she pulled away as if he was contaminated.

"Don't touch me!" She hissed.

"Rachael…" Riku sighed, looking away from her. He was conscious of Sora and Kairi standing by the door, watching them. "Come on, Rache, don't shut me out… You know what it's like…"

"I do." Rachael confirmed dryly. "That lot of idiots. Just because I was 'too young' or 'too ill'…" she ranted. Riku turned to glance at her.

_Rachael!_

_Roxas, you __**do **__know her! _

"Shush, Rache." Riku whispered in her ear. "They won't bother you again." Rachael turned and hugged her older brother, who simply returned the gesture.

"Riku…" She paused. "Your friend, the spiky haired one… it's him, isn't it? His eyes… they're the same." She asked in a whisper.

"It's him." He confirmed with a nod in the same volume. They released each other, and Riku put a hand on Rachael's shoulder, looking her in the eyes. "You'll let them have a look at your injuries now, right?" She nodded. "That's a good girl." He smiled at her, which she returned.

"Riku hardly ever smiles…" Kairi whispered in Sora's ear.

"Yeah… well, they are siblings… although, they get along a lot better than siblings normally do." He replied.

"They've been through a lot."

"No doubt."

Sora and Kairi both looked up in surprise as his mother entered the room, and glanced over at him.

"Sora, it's 9:30. You have school tomorrow. Let's head home."

"No." Sora shook his head defiantly.

"Don't you think that just…" She was cut off by the Kingdom Key being held in her face.

"I. Am. Not. Leaving. Yet." Sora said slowly and deliberately to get his point across, glaring at his mother. Everyone in the room froze. Seconds felt like minutes, and minutes an eternity, before Sora felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Control yourselves, Sora, Roxas." Kairi told him calmly. Sora lowered his Keyblade and allowed it to disappear.

"Sorry."

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to." Kairi scolded. Sora sighed.

"Forget it." He turned and left the room.

"That is… weird." Riku blinked in confusion. Sora wasn't usually like that… was he? No… he was always the optimistic 'we can get through this!' guy. "What's wrong with him?"

"Boom." Rachael muttered. Riku knew what she was talking about. She was referring to how he could suddenly vent his emotions about the Keyblade and such on any adult he knew. And the _power. _The power was probably overwhelming Sora now. He could order any of the adults around now. Surely he wouldn't, but he could if he wanted to. It was a lot like when Xehanort's Heartless had tampered with the Darkness in Riku's heart during Castle Oblivion. It was tempting to use it, but he didn't, until he fought Roxas. Rachael ignored the nurse as she took her arm and noted every last scar and bruise.

"Th-that one's from a Nobody." She informed the nurse with a stutter, pointing to a burn scar on her elbow she had gotten when she ticked off Axel. "There's other parts of it all over, like here," she pointed to the back of her neck, where there was another scar. The nurse simply nodded, turning the page and noting the burn scars she found there, rather than with the rest of them.

Riku watched as the nurse checked Rachael's various wounds. Kairi and Sora's mother had both left to find Sora. When the nurse was finished, she left, too, leaving Riku and Rachael in the room alone.

"You okay?" Riku asked her, glancing over his shoulder.

"Yeah. I was just thinking…" Rachael shrugged.

"'Bout what?"

"The time we were gone. Everything changed… Dad walked out on her… I wonder if he's even still alive." She muttered. He put his arm around her shoulders.

"Don't think about it, okay?" Riku whispered to her. "Everything will fix itself, in time." He smiled at her. "Hey, sing that song you wrote…" He closed his eyes as Rachael started to sing. It wasn't a language he knew. It came from a world neither he, nor Sora, had been to. But the words had their own meaning. Animals understood them, and Riku could feel their meanings through his own emotions. Sadness and worry were the most prominent emotions, but anger was there somewhere. Fear, surprise, hope and happiness…

Her voice died down as she finished her song.

They sat in silence for awhile, before a nurse came in. Riku looked up, and released Rachael.

"Riku, you two don't have anywhere to go, do you?" She asked concernedly. Riku shook his head. "You can stay overnight, then, while accommodation is arranged for you." He nodded in response.

"Thanks." Riku looked at Rachael. "I better head back to my room, Rache."

"I'll come by in the morning." She smiled at him.

"'Kay." Riku nodded, and then grabbed his crutches with a look of distaste, and sliding off Rachael's bed. "See you tomorrow." He waved, before he left the room and returned to his own.

Sora was fast asleep on the couch, and Kairi was sitting on the floor in front of him. She smiled at Riku, a smile which he returned. He pulled himself onto his bed, setting the crutches beside him as he lay down.

He fell asleep, but, he couldn't tell if he was dreaming, since he was half asleep at the time, he swore he heard people talking.

"_What'll happen to the kids?" Sora's mother, obviously. _

"_They'll probably get sent to an orphanage if no one takes them. They'll get split up there." The doctor, the only voice Riku wasn't sure about. _

"_Mom, they could stay with us!" Sora. Who could mistake that voice? _

"_Sora, we don't have the room!" His mother exclaimed. _

"_What about the guest room? Come on, I don't want Riku to have to leave the islands again unless it has to do with the Heartless! You saw how close he and Rachael are! It would kill them to split them up!" Sora, obviously. _

"_Sora… We can't afford to feed two more people." _

"_I'll get a part-time job, I'll go Heartless hunting! I always got lots of Munny from that." _

"_Sora, I won't…"_

"_If it keeps them out of an orphanage then I'll do it, no matter what you say. I'm not a little kid anymore." _

"_In not even two years you matured by four. Fine, we'll take care of them, for now." _


	5. Chapter 5

Author's notes: I think I owe you all an apology. I haven't been updating like I should be, I know. School's been out for ages and you're all probably not happy to find that I didn't update during the (Australian) summer holidays. I'd like to thank those who reviewed and those who are still reading. ZipporahssBird was the one who begged me to open up Microsoft Word and start typing again, so a big thanks in that direction. This chapter is dedicated to everyone still reading, and ZipporahssBird especially. On to the story!

**Abused**

The bleach smell was gone. That was the first thing Riku had realised. He wasn't in the hospital anymore, obviously. He barely opened his eyes, and suddenly someone wrapped their arms around him.

"Afternoon, sleepy." Rachael whispered.

"Afternoon?" Riku questioned, sitting up. Rachael released him as he did so. "What… where are we?"

"Sora's house, silly!" Rachael exclaimed. "His mother was kind enough to let us stay here!" Riku blinked. "I guess it's normal that you'd be a bit out of it… you were sleeping all through the car ride. It's just after 1 in the afternoon now." He almost shot out of the bed, causing her to laugh. "Easy, Riku." He then noticed the brace on his leg. He ignored it, though. What had he expected, that his knee would magically be fine in the morning? Well… he had kind of hoped that Sora would use Cura or something like that. Rachael grabbed his crutches from where they were beside the wooden door. Riku glanced around the room. There was a small, wooden side table with an alarm clock on it. There was also a built-in closet, and a bookshelf in the room. The walls were a navy blue, while the ceiling was a sky blue. The carpet floor was a plain grey color.

Rachael handed him the crutches, and helped him up. "The stairs are going to be an annoyance." She muttered, opening the door as he headed out of the room. She followed him, and led him down the hallway until she paused at a staircase. "Use the railing on one side and the crutch on the other. Pass me the other crutch." He did so, and gripped the railing. He carefully placed the crutch on the first stair and put his weight on it. Satisfied, he went to step, when the crutch came out from under him and send him tumbling down the stairs. Rachael ran down after him.

Riku groaned. He'd landed face down, and his knee was killing him now. His head was throbbing, and there was a tingling sensation in his arm. He was aware of three people around him, but couldn't make out what they were saying. They rolled him onto his back, and he found himself staring into the faces of Sora, Kairi and Rachael.

"Screw this!" Sora growled when Riku just stared blankly. He called the Kingdom Key and pointed it at Riku. "Cur-" The Keyblade was yanked from his hands. He looked over to see his mother holding it. He growled and just called it back. "My Keyblade, my magic, I do what I want with it." He glared at her.

"Wouldn't it get suspicious if his leg was suddenly healed?"

"Wouldn't it get suspicious to King Mickey if Heartless were to attack and Riku didn't fight?" Sora retorted. "If Heartless did attack the islands again, I might not have time to heal Riku. End of story." He pointed the Keyblade at Riku again. "Besides, I won't let him suffer. Curaga." Sora watched as the white magic took effect. Afterwards he saw his silver haired friend slightly crack an eye open to look at him. Sora gave his trademark grin. "How do you feel?"

"Like … hit … a train." Came the mumbled response, and Sora laughed, shaking his head.

"Riku, you okay?" Rachael asked concernedly.

"That's … question Rache…"

"Stop mumbling." She ordered, shaking his shoulder, and Riku glared at her, before sitting up.

"Easy, Riku." Kairi said, supporting his back, but he swatted her away, not wanting help. Riku then forced himself to stand, the others following suit. When he was on his feet, he put some weight on his formerly injured leg, and satisfied that it had healed, pulled the brace off.

"That was uncomfortable." He commented. Rachael grabbed it from him and darted upstairs, grabbing the crutches on her way, before returning a few moments later. He noticed that Sora had gotten quiet again. Roxas, no doubt.

_Why save him? He's the one who turned to the Darkness. _

_But he came back and even took on the appearance of An- Xehanort's Heartless, to save me. _

_He took on that form so he could just lock me away in some false world, give me false friends, dreams, feelings. You have my memories, why do you still want to hang around him? _

_You have my memories. Why do you still hate him? _

_Because of what he did to me, and, remember what he did to you, Sora? Abandoned you. Tried to kill you when you wouldn't join the Darkness. _

_We all make mistakes. Don't you regret leaving Organization XIII? ABANDONING Axel? Because that's pretty much what you did. And, even though you abandoned him, he gave his life to defeat that horde of Dusks. _

_Don't bring that up. That's different._

_How so? _

_It just is!_

_No, it's not, Roxas. Riku, as you say, abandoned me, but because I'm his friend, oh dear, the f word, I forgave him. We all make mistakes, Roxas. When will you learn that?_

Anything Roxas said to Sora past that point was ignored.

The next couple of days went by pretty easily. The four of them were down on the islands most of the time, just hanging out with Tidus, Selphie and Wakka. They were glad to discover that Riku was back in the group, and they treated him as if nothing had happened. He liked that. The teen hated being reminded of the abuse. The group also welcomed Rachael with open arms, despite her age.

Monday they went back to school.

At first, Riku's gang had darted right over to him, asking him stuff like 'why you hanging out with the porcupine?' and several mentioned the news report from Thursday. Riku shrugged them all off though, turning to Sora and Kairi.

"Meet you near the trees in the back of the school at first break?" Riku asked. It was where their group had always met at break and lunch. Sora and Kairi nodded.

"See you there." They replied in unison.

The three went to their individual classes after that. Break went smoothly, but they kept getting glares from Riku's former gang, which were always returned. The group then headed to their next classes. At lunch they came to a group of people in one of the hallways. Kairi and Sora, who had met up after class, pushed their way to the front. They saw Riku and one of the gang members, locked in a fist fight. At one point, Riku was pinned down. Kairi and Sora gasped when the other guy was suddenly flung into a locker, the front of his shirt had been singed by a Dark Aura spell. Riku's eyes were wide and he was looking at his hands, before he got to his feet and ran.

Riku ran until he got to the office, where he asked to make a phone call. He quickly dialled the number that King Mickey had given him to call only in the case of an emergency. Using magic in the middle of school counted when it came to World Boarders.

"_Hello, this is King Mickey. Who's calling?" _

"Your majesty," Riku spoke quietly. "It's me."

"_Riku! I told you to just call me Mickey. What's wrong, welp? Why are you talking quietly?" _

"I'm in the middle of school at lunch break. I got into a fight with one of the kids… I can't control my magic any more. I used a Dark Aura spell on him in front of a bunch of the students… without calling Way to the Dawn." Riku replied in a hushed tone. "I don't know what to do…"

"_Don't get into any more fights. I'll be down as soon as I can to try and figure out what's gone wrong with your magic. If you accidentally use a spell again, I want you to call me back." _

"Yes your majesty- I mean, I'll try, Mickey." Riku quickly corrected himself.

"_Good. I'll see you soon." _

"Thanks." Riku replied before the line went dead. He hung up and thanked the receptionist before leaving, only to find Sora and Kairi. The Keyblade Master gripped Riku's shirt and shook him.

"What the hell was up with that?! You know not to use magic!" Sora exclaimed.

"That's why I called the King, Sora. My magic used _itself,_ I didn't do anything. I didn't even have Way to the Dawn out!" Riku replied. Sora backed off then.

The rest of the day was fairly smooth, except when Riku accidentally burned his science test. It was quickly extinguished, but he got an E for the test. When Sora, Riku and Kairi got home, after Rachael was picked up from the nearby primary school, they found the King already inside. Riku smiled.

"Thanks."

"I came as quick as I could." Mickey replied. Sora's mother looked over in surprise.

"Your majesty! What brings you here?" She asked, hurrying over and bowing. Mickey glanced at Riku, before looking back at her.

"No need to bow." He told her. Sora's mother quickly stood straight again. "It's Keyblade business only, I'm afraid. No, not Heartless or Nobodies." He interrupted when she went to speak. "More along the lines of magic. Oh, I heard the rumour about your husband… nearly two years ago, but I never got to confirm it… is it true?" Sora's mother nodded. "Ah, so I see… and he hasn't made contact since?"

"I'm afraid not. One day he was here, the next he was gone, divorced from his current wife and all. Sam got up and left shortly after. Sara didn't like being around another Keyblader when she found out about her brother. My parents picked her up last night." She explained. Sora, Riku and Kairi were all confused, having no clue what they were talking about.

"Anyway, Riku, any other incidences other than the fight?" Mickey got back on subject.

"Science class I accidently burned my test with a fire spell…" Riku replied sheepishly, scratching the back of his head, "but other than that, no… unless I accidentally cured someone at one point."

"This is bad… if your magic is running amuck then you're not the only person effected… it might even effect Master Yen Cid eventually… before then Donald, Merlin, you, Sora, me, Aerith, and any other magician we know. If you were to use another Dark Aura spell on someone small…"

"Like Rachael," Riku cut in.

"Like Rachael," Mickey echoed, "it could kill them."

"Wait," Sora's mother interrupted, "are you saying that Riku involuntarily used magic at school? Twice?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so." Mickey nodded.

"I think I know what's wrong… your majesty, may I borrow a ship to go and fix this?" She asked. Everyone but Mickey looked at her in shock.

"Mom?" Sora managed.

"Yes, Sora. I've left the islands before." She replied. "I know what's wrong with the magics. Your majesty, I may be the only one able to fix this."

"You know the risks?" He asked.

"Of course."

"Then you may. I'll take you to my castle tonight. You know where to find my ship." Mickey replied. "I'll see you all later, welps." With that, he walked out of the house. Sora's mother pulled her son into a hug.

"Take care of yourself, alright?"

He nodded. "Of course, mom."

Then she did something unexpected, she _hugged_ _**Riku**_.

"Make sure Sora doesn't get himself into any trouble, and make sure that he doesn't leave this world."

"Uh-duh-um… okay?" Riku managed, a bit in shock that she suddenly hugged him. She then turned and headed upstairs to pack.

"Well that was sudden." Rachael broke the silence.

"No kidding…"


	6. Chapter 6

Author's notes: Another chapter! This may seemed a bit rushed… let me know if it's too rushed at all. It's a bit short for my liking, too, but I liked where I ended it so I'm not going to change it.

**Abused**

Sora slammed his hand on his alarm clock, sitting up sleepily. It was Tuesday, which meant more school. He was curious as to whether or not his magic would go crazy, too… The Keyblade Master also began to wonder if it was safe for them to go to school. After all, Riku claimed to have burned his science test. He stood up, changed into his school uniform and headed downstairs. Riku was already there, staring at something on the table.

"Sora, have a look at this." He tapped a book sitting there. Sora walked over, and pulled the note off the leather cover.

_Sora, Riku, _

_I started writing this before you two could remember. I hope it answers some questions for you. No, I won't be taking you to school. I left last night while you were sleeping. I'm sorry I never got a chance to tell you boys this myself. I may not return from this mission. Odds are against me, actually. Read an entry or more every day when you get home from school, but don't overdo it. _

_I love you. _

Sora recognised the handwriting. It was his mother's. The note had been addressed to both him and Riku…

"Well, we'll just do what the note says, I guess." Riku decided with a shrug. Sora nodded.

The two boys continued to get ready for school. They had to leave early, since neither had a driver's licence or learner's permit yet. After dropping Rachael off at the primary school, they headed to the high school.

The day went fairly smoothly, until Sora and Kairi's third period math class when the grade book decided to randomly catch on fire. There was a loud THUNK as Sora's head slammed against the desk, and Kairi glared at him.

They met up at lunch. Riku claimed to have accidentally given his P.E. coach a concussion with a Dark Aura spell, burned his English teacher's hair off (it was styled very badly anyway), shocked the principal, and froze one of the gang's lockers belonging to a member of his former gang (no complaints there).

The rest of the day went by with minimal injuries, a burnt desk and a fried computer. The trio got Rachael from her school then headed to Sora's house. The brunette grabbed the book from off the kitchen table and thunked down on the couch in the living room and began reading. He found that it wasn't a novel or anything like that, no, it was his mother's journal.

_**Entry one**_

_I decided to begin writing journal entries of everything that happens from this point on. My husband, the current Keyblade Master, and his majesty King Mickey both seem to approve. I have two sons right now, one is two and the other is a year old. I also have a daughter who just turned six. I currently reside with my family in Radiant Garden. It's peaceful, but both myself and my husband are suspicious of one Ansem's apprentices, Xehanort. Ever since he started learning along side Ienzo that boy's become rebellious… I fear for his life, I truly do. _

_**Entry two**_

_The young princess of Radiant Garden, Kairi, is growing up quite well, I've noticed. We get visits from her family quite often, due to my husband's status, no doubt. I just fear for my children's futures… if the forces of Darkness were to attack in a few years time then they would be chosen… I don't want that at all… and Princess Kairi… poor child…_

_**Entry three**_

_My husband and I have agreed that the three destined ones, Princess Kairi and my two sons, must be split up. The King has arranged for me to be taken to another world, along with my daughter and younger son. My husband and elder son are going to another world, too. I don't like this, but it must be done, for the children's sakes. _

_I hope this works out for better in the end._

Sora put the journal down. He'd read a full three entries. He was sure of this, the daughter was Sam. She was five years older than Sora. He was the younger brother… but who was the older brother? Kairi was mentioned several times. That explained why his mother always acted so… humble around her. Now he just had more questions. Like who was the older brother? If his parents separated when he was little, then was the deceased man, who had drowned in a rip current, he had known to be his father really was only a stand-in? If so, who was is real father? Where did they go after leaving Radiant Garden?

"You have that look like you're confused about something. If it has to do with the book, read more." Riku suggested, causing Sora to jump. He hadn't noticed the silver haired teen sit beside him.

"I'm not in the mood to read too much." Sora replied, shaking his head. Riku shrugged. He didn't feel like arguing.

"Suit yourself."

After they changed into their normal clothes, the four kids headed down to the islands. Kairi's mother and father for all intensive purposes, in other words her foster parents, had agreed to let Sora, Riku and Rachael stay at their house for dinner. Afterwards, they drove the three back to Sora's house.

Nothing eventful happened for the next few days, besides a few burned, fried, frozen, injured or suddenly energized people or objects. Sora read an entry in the journal each day.

_**Entry four**_

_The three of us have settled into our home in the Destiny Isles, and already Sam, my daughter, is getting homesick. She misses the kids back in Radiant Garden, but we had to leave. She's making friends on the islands, too, but she claims that it's 'just not the same'. My son hasn't noticed the difference. I envy him sometimes. Too young to realise what's going on, too young to care. He seems to miss his brother, though. The two were really close… _

_**Entry five**_

_Nothing eventful's happened for the past three years, so I haven't written anything in. Sam's now nine and Sora's four…_

_This shouldn't have happened… I found out where my husband ran to. Apparently great minds think alike because we both ended up here. He said there were no other worlds fitting. Well, as long as the princess is still in Radiant Garden nothing too bad can happen. The two boys are clueless to the fact that they're brothers. My husband and I have decided to keep it that way. The boys have become best friends, though. I smile whenever I see them playing out on the beach. So ignorant of what might happen…_

_**Entry six**_

_No… no… this is not good at all. Sora brought home a girl, about his age today, saying that she washed up on the beach with no recollection of where she was from. _

_The problem is that this girl is Princess Kairi of Radiant Garden. _

_The three are united! This is not good at all…_

A month and many magical accidents later he was nearly done reading all the entries. He was in the back, dated very recently.

Riku, Kairi and Rachael were in the kitchen, trying to find something for dinner, when there was a loud THUNK in the other room. They ran in to see Sora standing in the middle of the living room, frozen. The book was on the floor in front of him. Riku picked it up and read the entry, nearly dropping the book himself.

"Riku, Sora, what is it?" Kairi asked concernedly, before taking the journal from the elder's hands. Once she read the entry, she understood. "I never knew… you'd never tell just by looks…"

_Sora. _

_What, Roxas? _

_PLEASE tell me the entry is a LIE. I cannot STAND with that! _

_Sounds like a personal problem, 'cause I don't mind it one bit. _

_Sora? _

_Yes, Roxas? _

_I hate you. _

_Feeling's mutual buddy, feeling's mutual._


	7. Chapter 7

Author's notes: Alright, the entry that Sora and Riku reacted so strongly to is revealed in this chapter! Have fun. It's a new school year for me, too… school just started up today (yay, note the sarcasm.)

**Abused**

_Today I discovered what happened to Sora, Riku and Kairi when they vanished for all that time, and my hunch was correct. Keyblades and Heartless. I didn't want this to happen at all… I was shocked, however, when Sora raised his hand to claim the title of Keyblade Master, not Riku. The King had told me that the rank was usually given to the elder of brothers, when both wielded Keyblades, as in this case. Riku didn't seem very willing to explain his story… I wonder what happened that caused him to lose his title… I'm sure I'll find out eventually. _

_But what's pulled at my heart the most was the realisation as to why Sora's older brother had been picking on him at school so much. I partially blame myself. If I had maybe stepped up as Riku's mother then he wouldn't have gone through it… but Rachael… if I had stepped up she would've been alone, going through that abuse without anyone there to support her. I've decided to let the two kids stay with me, after an argument with Sora. I wasn't very willing to, at first. Sara didn't seem to like the feeling she got when she was around Riku, so I sent her to a friend's house. I'll just claim that my parents came and got her. _

_So much has happened in so little time… thus causing this abnormally long entry… _

Kairi set the book down on the end table. The two boys were still frozen in shock. She could only imagine how Roxas was reacting. No doubt he was really ticked off.

"That explains…"

"A lot." Riku finished for Sora. "Including the random hug before she left… she said that she probably won't return… she wanted a chance to treat me like her son again…"

"Meaning the missing father of mine…"

"Is really my father." Riku finished. "And no one knows where he went." Sora nodded. "There had always been strange sibling-like people in very faded memories, but my father told me that they were just dreams… I believed him, too…" He then grinned. "How's Roxas holding up?"

"He's giving me a damn headache!" Sora replied.

"And multiple personality disorder." Kairi muttered, referring to Sora's cussing. She'd notice that he had been swearing lately, but never really said anything. All the kids at school swore, anyway. Heck, even the year sevens swore occasionally.

"That, too." Sora agreed, frowning. He hadn't noticed it before, but she was right. Roxas was turning him into a different person.

"Hey, no matter what happens, I won't blame you." Riku assured Sora, leaning closer so he was eye-level with the brunette. "Little brother." He added. Sora glared at him.

"Hey, you don't have to treat me any differently now." He grumbled. Riku just grinned and shook his head.

They all headed down to the beach when Kairi suggested it. It was to 'celebrate' as she put it. They went to the islands, and Sora and Riku grabbed a couple of wooden swords when they noticed Tidus and Wakka training for Blitzball season. They'd been hoping to use the Keyblades but that wasn't a possibility. The two began to sword fight, Kairi watching. Tidus and Wakka stopped when they saw how greatly the two's fighting skills had improved since they were gone, and walked over to sit by Kairi in the sand, watching the two teenagers sword fight. Sora knocked Riku's sword out of his hand at one point, before jumping up, kicking off Riku's shoulder and grabbing the sword mid-back flip, before landing with both swords crossed in front of Riku's neck.

"I win." He grinned.

"Dang, that sucks." Riku frowned, taking his sword out of Sora's hand. "Was that you fighting or was it Roxas?" He got a glare, and Sora jerked his head towards Tidus and Wakka. "Inside joke…" Riku explained nervously, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. Kairi sighed, shaking her head.

"Idiots." She muttered.

Everyone headed home a few hours later. Everyone forgot dinner, too. Roxas was ticked off, to put it nicely.

They all went to school the next day. Riku's gang was still trying to get him to rejoin them. During lunch he snapped at them when they were teasing Sora.

"HEY! You idiots will stop teasing my brother." He growled. Everyone within earshot looked over at him. "Unless you have a deathwish." Sora blinked. Riku was beginning to get protective, he noticed. Then again, he guessed that Riku didn't want to lose what family he had left, which was Rachael and Sora. His father had left and Sam was off living her own life. Sara didn't like Riku, but she was just his half-sister anyway.

At Riku's threat, the gang all froze, before running away.

"You didn't have to do that." Sora commented as Riku sat back down with the others.

"I wanted to." Riku replied with a shrug. Tidus and Selphie had backed away a bit. Neither had known about Sora and Riku being related, but neither cared to mention it. Maybe it was just some thing to get the others to stop teasing Sora? They didn't know.

"Are you two really brothers?" Selphie broke the awkward silence. Sora and Riku both nodded. "When did you two find out?! That's great!"

"Last night." Sora replied. "From my mother's journal." He added.

"You read your mother's diary?" Selphie raised an eyebrow.

"She told us to." Riku backed Sora up. "She left and she's not coming back."

"I'm so sorry…" Selphie gasped. "I thought she was just on a vacation or something… she walked out on you, too?"

"She didn't walk out." He replied.

"Then what happened?"

"It's complicated…"

"Come to the island tonight," Sora interrupted, "and we'll tell you _everything_, if you promise not to tell a soul. Not even your pet fish, or the cockroach under the street lamp. Not a soul." Selphie and Tidus nodded in turn.

"What about Wakka?" Tidus asked.

"As long as he doesn't spill." Riku replied. Even though Wakka was the oldest out of the group, he was still a bit too young to know anything about that Heartless war. Kairi seemed to be deep in thought. She wasn't sure if it was a good idea, telling Tidus, Selphie and Wakka about the Keyblades, but the Keyblade Master had made the decision. Technically deciding who knew about the Keyblade _was_ his choice. She wondered what the King would say…

Her thoughts were interrupted by the bell, and the group all got up, heading to their own lockers.

A few more magic-regarding incidents occurred during their first class after lunch, and both Sora and Riku were sent to the principal's office.

"You, too?" Riku raised an eyebrow at his newly discovered younger brother as the brunette walked toward him.

"Yeah, I accidentally burned Selphie's hairbrush."

Riku couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"What did you do?" Sora raised an eyebrow.

"Short-circuited the computer and shocked one of my old gang members."

"Was that really an accident?"

"Yeah, but I can't say I really regret it. He deserved it."

Sora shook his head, before the door to the principal's office opened.

"Boys, you can come in now." His voice rang out from inside the office.

The two didn't hesitate, deciding to get it over with sooner, rather than later.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's notes: Not much to say, really…

OH! There's a point where I call that fight that most people call the Thousand Heartless Battle, The Battle of Thousands of Heartless. That is because there were more than a thousand Heartless. I have always believed that you, Donald and Goofy all fought a thousand each when you split up at that one point, plus where you fight with all the other Final Fantasy characters. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

**Abused**

The principal sat behind his desk, folding his hands. He was in his mid-fifties, his hair greying with age. His eyes were a slate colour, and he was wearing his black suit that he wore pretty much every day when he was at the school. Sora and Riku sat in the two cushioned red chairs on the other side. The room was dark, themed with a dark mahogany red. Riku noticed Sora biting his lip, shifting positions often, and guessed that Roxas was being reminded of Xemnas, the air of authority being as thick as it was.

"I don't like how you two have been using magic to pull pranks around the school, boys. Students are beginning to talk…" The principal said slowly.

"We're not using magic purposely. If we wanted to pull a prank with magic, then we'd be pulling it on people we hate." Riku growled, glaring at him. Sora didn't speak.

"Then what is going on?"

"Magic has been going out of control…" Sora spoke finally. "The King and my mother went off to fix it…" The principal looked stunned for a moment, before closing his eyes and nodding.

"Ah, yes… I understand now. Magic wasn't always controllable until your mother stepped in…"

Sora nodded in understanding, remembering the diary entries. Many magic-users, even Keybladers, had died while trying to control their magics. His mother had assisted King Mickey, finding the core of all magic and creating a pact with it… it was very vague on how, though. Somehow she had managed to speak with it…

"It'll kill her…" Sora sighed, closing his eyes. "There's no way she'll survive. 'If you wish to change the agreement, your life shall be the price.'" The principal looked shocked for a moment.

"My boy, you saw the diary?"

Sora nodded. "Mother left it out for us to read."

"Ah… I see… I have to do something about this, though. I can't let this go on, it's too dangerous… boys, I want you to leave the school until control over magic is established again."

Sora and Riku both looked shocked.

"We already missed two years!" Sora exclaimed.

"Anymore and we'll have to flunk out!" Riku added.

"We had a hard enough time when we returned…"

"It would be impossible to catch up if we had to leave again."

"It could take ages until control returns!"

"BOYS!"

Both jumped when the principal stood, slammed his hands on the table and yelled at them. Papers were jolted and some fell to the floor.

"I am well aware of this. I will alert the teachers and they will assign you the necessary work from your textbooks for while you are gone. I suggest cleaning out your lockers."

"And Kairi?" Sora asked.

"That is up to her and her foster parents."

Sora nodded. Riku bit his lip. He didn't like this at all.

"Come, boys. We have to go talk to your teachers."

Sora and Riku both stood, following the principal out of his office. They went to Riku's current class, math, first. The young female teacher, appearing to be only a couple years out of university, glanced over at the trio waiting by the door. The fried computer was still sitting in the corner, and Sora had to keep himself from snickering.

"Riku and Sora are leaving the school for awhile. I need you to assign them a couple months worth of work."

"Extended suspension? Why?" She asked, confused.

"You wouldn't understand, I'm afraid. Just do so."

She nodded, before heading over to her desk and getting together a lot of papers. Riku mentally moaned, knowing that each were homework sheets that she handed out. Sora snickered, noticing the look on the silver haired teenager's face. The teacher then handed the papers over to Riku.

"All the textbook pages and everything were included. Your books are in there somewhere, too." She explained, before heading back to the desk and getting Sora's work, which turned out to be a bit more than Riku.

"Who's laughing now?" Riku snickered as they headed to the other classes.

At the last room, that happened to be Sora's current class, science, Kairi looked over and sent him a questioning look, before getting up and walking over. The teacher, an elder woman with grey hair and brown eyes, tried to get her to sit back down.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realise royalty had to answer to a run of the mill teacher." Kairi hissed quietly. Sora mentally cracked up laughing. Check and mate. The teacher backed off. "Sora, Riku, what's going on?" She asked, her tone suddenly changing to concerned.

"Our magic's gotten too out of hand; we have to leave for awhile." Sora explained. Kairi frowned.

"I guess we all knew this would happen…" She sighed.

"Hey, it's only until things get back to normal." Riku offered as comfort. "Drop by after school, alright?"

"Sure. I'll get Rachael on the way, if you want." Kairi offered. Riku nodded.

"I'd appreciate it, thanks. See you later." He added as the teacher brought over Sora and Riku's work loads. Kairi nodded.

"Yeah, see you." She waved as they walked off.

The boys were taken to their lockers, where they packed their backpacks. The bags weighed tons, but the two boys endured it. If they hadn't been fighting for two years straight, they probably would've crumbled under the weight.

"Aero." Sora muttered, and the bags suddenly felt lighter. Riku glared at him, getting such in return.

"I shall await your return, boys. Don't burn your house down." The principal said when they reached the main exit. The brothers nodded, before they began the walk home.

By the time they got there, Sora's Aero spell had worn off. The two boys shoulders and backs were sore. They dropped their bags in the hall, collapsing. Neither could be bothered to get up, legs stinging from being forced to walk under the extra weight. Sora was reminded of the Battle of Thousands of Heartless. Riku, half-conscious, felt something smack into his foot after awhile, and someone let out an exclamation. He didn't care who it was, noticing two people stepping around him and Sora. He heard someone try to lift his backpack, and a 'no wonder they've fainted.' Whoever it was gave up, and the two people headed into another room.

He wasn't sure how long it was, but he finally came to and forced himself to sit up. His limbs were sore, and his head throbbing. Sora was unconscious, so Riku tried to shake him awake.

"Sora, get up!" He exclaimed when the brunette was unstirred.

"He won't wake."

Riku froze when he felt metal press against his neck, and held his breath. He knew who it was, and why the Keyblade Master would not wake. His eyes looked over at the person pointing the weapon at him.

"I should've known you'd appear eventually..."


	9. Chapter 9

**Abused**

"…Roxas."

The blond was unmoved, glaring into Riku's eyes. Riku glared back. Neither flinched, nor budged, even though Oblivion was being pressed against Riku's throat. The elder understood why Sora would not wake now. Roxas had stolen some of his soul to become a solid entity, and keep the Keyblade Master out of the way. Roxas couldn't be killing himself now, could he? The Nobody was wearing the Organization XIII cloak, representing himself as an enemy.

"What do you want?" Riku sneered.

"You will soon discover." Roxas replied.

"Roxas?"

Both teens looked over to see Rachael standing there, her eyes wide with shock. Roxas didn't hesitate to turn, pull his hood up and leave quickly.

"Is he okay?" Rachael asked.

"I don't know, Rache, I don't know." Riku replied.

* * *

Riku sighed, still pacing. He was upstairs in the room he had woken up in months before. Rachael had fallen asleep a couple hours before, since it was ten at night. He wasn't sure what he would do. There was no way to wake Sora without Roxas giving the Keyblade Master a sufficient amount of his heart back… would Sora ever wake up? There had to be a way… He sighed again, heading back downstairs. "Kairi, I'm going for a walk. Clear my head a bit." He said as he passed the burgundy haired girl. Kairi nodded in response.

"Alright. I'll watch Sora." She nodded. She had called her foster parents to say that she was spending the night at Sora's, due to an emergency the two brothers were facing. Her foster parents didn't mind, so that was that.

Riku left the house, just walking. He didn't care where, as long as he wasn't hit by a car. Things weren't looking good. Subconsciously he kept looking for a black cloak, or someone with spiky blond hair, but didn't succeed. He checked his watch, and, seeing that it was midnight, looked around to get his bearings. He was near the south entrance of the main shopping center. Now knowing his location, he headed home.

The first thing he saw was the flashing lights, and heard the sirens. His pace quickened, and he spotted an ambulance and a cop cruiser parked outside the house. He suddenly made a mad dash inside, only to be stopped by a cop.

"What happened? Where's my brother?!" Riku snapped.

"Brother?" The cop questioned.

"The Keyblade Master." Riku hissed. The cop pointed to the ambulance.

"Better hurry, they're leaving soon."

"Rachael and Kairi?"

"Already in there."

Riku turned, and, just as the ambulance began to drive off, jumped onto the metal step, hanging onto the door handles. He yanked them open, and ducked inside before closing them behind him. The smell of blood suddenly filled his nostrils.

"Could you make a bigger entrance?" Rachael asked. Riku shrugged, before looking over at Kairi. Her face was pale, and the only expression on her features was worry. Then he looked at Sora.

He had never seen someone more covered in blood in his life. Sora would definitely need a new school uniform, no doubt about that. You couldn't tell that the shirt was once white, or shorts once blue. His hair was soaked in the red liquid, as was the rest of the young Keyblade Master's body. A mask was over his face, and an IV was hooked up to his arm. Riku could barely see the bandages around Sora's torso head, thigh and his arm.

"Sora…" Riku breathed. "How could this happen?" His hands clenched into fists. "Damn you, Roxas." He muttered.

"Sit, before you get hurt." Kairi ordered, although her voice lacked the snappish tone of authority. Riku nodded, sitting beside her and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Kairi, I shouldn't have left, I'm sorry…" He apologized.

"It's not your fault." Kairi replied.

"I tried to stop Roxas." Rachael piped up. "But he wouldn't listen to me. He went on as if I wasn't there…" She then noticed that Riku had his marker-covered cell phone out, and was dialling a number. "Who're you calling."

"Sam. She needs to know what's happened to Sora." Riku replied.

"_Hello?" _

"Sam? Is that really you?" Riku was on the verge of laughing. He hadn't heard her since he, Sora and Kairi had left the islands.

"_Yes… who's this?" _

"Riku."

"_Sora's friend?" _

"Your brother."

"…_Mother told you, then?" _

"That's not important. Sora's badly injured…" He then whispered. "I'm not sure if he'll pull through."

"_Oh no… thanks for calling, Riku. I'll uh… I'm in college right now but I'll try to come over as quickly as I can." _

"Thanks, Sam."

"_It's not a problem. See you later, little brother." _

"Goodbye, sis." Riku didn't appreciate the little, but figured that he'd have to get used to it. Sam used that term with Sora whenever she could, if his memory served him correctly. He hung up and put the phone away, sighing. Kairi looked over, watching him. Riku never looked up from his hands. He felt extremely guilty. If he hadn't left then… Riku quickly shook his head, looking up.

The rest of the ride went smoothly at the ambulance's high-speeds. When they were there, Riku did all he could to help them get Sora off the vehicle. Then the brunette was carted off to the ER, leaving Riku, Rachael and Kairi standing there. Then Riku broke down, collapsing to his hands and knees.

"I think I'm gunna be sick…" He muttered. Kairi patted his back, while Rachael grabbed a chuck bucket from the ambulance and placed it in front of him. Riku barfed shortly after. Kairi looked away, plugging her nose to keep from spewing, too. Rachael seemed unaffected. "Too much blood…" the silver haired Keyblader muttered when he was finished. Rachael handed him a towel, which he used to clean his mouth. Rachael then took the bucket and left without another word. Riku didn't move, his hands pressed against his knees, so Kairi patted his back again.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Riku shrugged.

"I don't know. I'm usually not squeamish when it comes to blood and gore but…" Riku shuddered. "That was too much… Roxas owes me my last three meals." He stood shakily, and he and Kairi headed into the hospital. They sat in the lobby, Riku pacing back and forth annoyingly.

A couple hours later, they were led into one of the rooms. Sora was lying on the hospital bed, mask, IV, heart rate monitor and all. The constant beeping would get annoying, but they would have to bare it. Sora looked pale, and weak, but the blood was gone. They must've cleaned him up after operating on him in the emergency room. Riku gently put a hand on Sora's forehead. "He's so cold…" He muttered, before sitting down.

Eventually, he drifted off to sleep, Kairi sitting beside him. Rachael had come in at one point and lied down on the floor. It was uncomfortable, but she somehow managed to sleep.

Riku cracked an eye open tiredly. The monotonous beeping was still going, so that was good. Sora was still alive.

Riku nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the man sitting in the chair on the other side of the room, watching him.

"I was wondering when you would wake."

"You're alive…" Riku breathed, before he stood and stepped over Rachael. "Why… why did you leave?" He closed his eyes.

"I had no choice, my boy. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have, I know. When Sam called me to say that Sora had possibly fatal injuries, I came as quickly as I could."

"Thank you." Riku smiled slightly.

"It's the least I could do."

"I missed you, father."


	10. Chapter 10

Author's notes: Meh. SLIGHT SPOILER IN THIS AUTHOR'S NOTE. NO LIKIE NO READIE.

Alright… well, I was originally planning on having Riku and Sora's father be one of the FF characters, but I couldn't really find any one who fit, so I made him an OC. Sorry if I disappointed anyone by doing that but tough luck.

**Abused**

Riku took a moment to study his father. The man's silver hair was an average length, unlike Riku's long hair, and was tossed around messily. Riku guessed that he didn't waste any time. His father was wearing simple grey cargo pants and a grey sleeveless shirt with a leather jacket over the top. He wore army-style boots, and a silver and gold motorcycle helmet was tucked under his arm.

"I missed you too, son."

"Why did you leave?"

"To find you, of course! I didn't know until the King stopped by that you had been back for, geeze, nearly a year now?"

Riku let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, time sure flies here." He nodded, before glancing over at Sora.

"What happened?" His father asked.

"Sora has a Nobody, named Roxas. That Nobody had fused with him at the end of our last adventure. Roxas apparently got restless, and separated, taking a part of Sora's heart with him. I went for a walk to clear my head… when I got back a cop car and an ambulance was parked outside the house…" Riku shook his head quickly.

"A Nobody, you say? Ah, well, then, I guess the trio is complete!"

"Trio?" Riku asked, tilting his head slightly.

"There have always been three, Riku, and a king to rule beside. No more, no less. A Light, a Dark, and a Betwixt, also known as a being of the Twilight, then there's the king that they rule beside. The Keyblade Master can be any of the three main Keybladers, in this case, your brother."

"The Light…" Riku muttered. "Would Roxas be the Darkness, then?"

"Oh, no, Riku! Roxas, by race, is a Betwixt!"

"Then…"

"Yes," his father nodded solemnly. "That leaves you to be the Darkness."

That hit Riku like a mallet. _He _was the Darkness of the Keyblader trio… "So I've always been doomed to fall to the Darkness…"

"Fall, no. _Embrace, _use the Darkness to protect people, to do _good._"

"Good and evil are matters of perspective."

"Even so, you can use it to help people. _Embrace _it, Riku. You'll learn, with time. Never, _ever, _give in to it, though."

Riku nodded determinedly. "I'll try." He glanced over at Sora. "But first, Roxas. He can't be let to roam around free like this." His father nodded.

"I'll go!"

Both turned to see Rachael sitting up. Apparently she had been listening the whole time.

"If things get out of hand…"

"I'll stop Roxas!" Rachael interrupted Riku.

"Let her go. She'll be fine, Riku." Their father advised. Riku sighed, but nodded.

"Let's go, Rache."

Rachael nodded, stood and practically ran out of the room. Riku walked over to Sora, and placed a hand on his cold forehead. He sighed.

"Hang on, Sora, I'll return your heart soon enough." He promised, before turning and leaving.

He found Rachael waiting outside for him. She glanced up, nodded, and the two began to search the town on the mainland.

After a couple hours, the sun appeared above the horizon, and still no sign of Roxas. Riku slumped down against the wall of the local fish and chips shop, sighing.

"We haven't found him anywhere..." he muttered, before his phone rang. He quickly pulled it out and answered it. "Hello?"

"_Riku, you need to get down here, quickly." _

"What's wrong?" Riku asked the person on the other end, his father.

"_No time to explain, just hurry." _

With that, his father hung up. Riku flicked the phone closed and put it away.

"Come on." He grabbed Rachael's arm as he took off running. His sister followed along close behind him.

They ran until they caught up with a bus just starting to leave the station. When they did, the two silver haired adolescents jumped up and landed on the roof of the bus. Riku was impressed with Rachael, who didn't seem to be having any trouble keeping her balance. The two jumped off when they rounded the corner near the hospital, sprinting inside. He didn't even bother to talk to the receptionist, barrelling through to the room Sora was in.

The first thing he noticed was that Sora was restrained to the bed, struggling to get free. Kairi had a bloodied-up tissue to her nose, and a woman with silvery light brown hair, and eyes the same colour as Riku's was standing off in the corner, wearing jeans and a grey t-shirt and joggers. She appeared to be around twenty-one, twenty-two.

Riku walked over to Sora, putting a hand on his shoulder and pushing him back down onto the bed. Sora's eyes shot open to give Riku a death glare.

But it wasn't Sora...

Riku's hand curled into a fist, gripping onto Sora's clothing.

"Roxas. You've been hiding here this whole time..." he growled. Everyone except Rachael stiffened.

"Roxas," the girl hissed. She walked over and put a hand on Sora's forehead.

"What do you want, Rachael?"

It was Roxas's voice that had left Sora's mouth. Riku nearly flinched when he heard it.

"Why do this?" She asked softly. The teenager jerked in response, still glaring at Riku. Riku saw his expression soften.

"I'll help you, Sora." Riku promised, getting a nod in response, before Sora screamed and began to struggle against the restraints. "Roxas, quit this! It is getting you nowhere." He growled. Rachael glared at him, before whispering something in Sora's ear. The teenager seemed to relax a bit, before his eyes closed. Sora forced them open again, looking up at Riku pitifully.

"Sleep, Sora. Let me worry about Roxas." Riku ordered. Sora nodded weakly, closing his eyes. Riku looked at Rachael. "What did you do?"

"Separated them." Rachael replied. He could see sweat beads on her forehead, and she looked exhausted, to say the least.

"I'll go find Roxas."

"I'll come." Sam offered. "I'll just have to get my sword from the car, if we're fighting." Riku nodded.

"Alright, meet you out front."

Sam nodded then left. Riku turned to Kairi. "Hey, you okay?" He asked. She'd thrown the tissue out, since her nose had stopped bleeding.

"What'll happen to Sora, if Roxas dies with a part of his heart?"

"I... don't know." Riku admitted. Kairi looked down. "Hey, I won't let that happen." He promised. Kairi nodded. He then turned and left the room.

Sam was leaning against a nearby tree, a samurai sword in her right hand. She glanced over, and nodded. The two silently began to search the town.

They came to the main shopping center, and spotted Roxas standing at the main entrance, Keyblades in hand. He was looking down, eyes closed, and his arms were crossed across his chest. Riku called Way to the Dawn in an instant, and Sam gripped her sword with both hands, getting into a fighting position. The Nobody's head snapped up and he glared at them. The other people in the area began to clear out.

"Come to kill me again? Not going to climb up to the top of the shopping center and make me run up it? I'm disappointed, Riku. Going to use Darkness to strangle me again?"

"Never!" Riku snapped.

"Shame. It's the only way you can beat me... at least you lost that stupid blindfold." Roxas then charged, swinging Oblivion to slice Riku. Riku ducked, and Sam darted forward to catch Oathkeeper on her sword. Roxas spun around, striking her on the side with Oblivion. Sam rolled with the blow, minimising injury. Riku swept his foot across the ground, tripping Roxas, who flipped to regain his balance.

"Riku, you seem to have lost your touch." Roxas smirked. Riku growled in response, then realised something. The smell of Twilight had become more potent... He spun around just in time to find himself and Sam surrounded by Samurai Nobodies.

"Damn." He cursed.

"The irony." Sam commented, glancing at her sword then at the Nobodies, before hacking through a couple of them. More appeared and took their place. She backed up so she was back-to-back with Riku. They didn't remain like that for long, though. Riku darted forward and jumped up, trying to slice Roxas. The Keyblade-weilding Nobody brought his Keyblades up in defence, and Riku screamed in pain, seconds before everything went black.

_Black, black, and more black. That was all this place was comprised of. Riku looked around, trying to see something other than black, without success. He sighed. _

"_Am I... dead?" He asked. Then he looked up. A light shined in the distance, and it was approaching him. He covered his eyes, then saw a person in the light. "Sora!" He exclaimed. Sora stopped. His eyes were vacant, empty. He was an empty shell. Riku shook his shoulders. "Sora!" Sora looked up at him, before emotion filled his eyes. _

"_Riku..." Sora hugged his brother. "I'm sorry..." _

"_Sora, what's wrong?" _

"_Riku, you have to hurry... I'm running out of time..." _

_Riku wrapped his arms around his younger brother. "How? There's nothing I can do... not from here, anyway..." _

"_Awaken." _

_Sora's form became transparent, before it faded from sight completely. Riku waved his hands where Sora had been, but found nothing there. _

Then his eyes opened, and light filled his vision.


	11. Chapter 11

Author's notes: This is the first time in a long time I've updated two days in a row... school being back in gives me nothing better to think about... I don't like my math teacher this year... she yelled at me for looking up how to do some math without a calculator. She doesn't tell us how to do the work, just says 'get out your calculator, hit this button, this button, this button and this button then hit equals.' She said that using a calculator is an important life skill. What. The. Hell?

**Abused**

When Riku's vision cleared, he found himself looking up at the sky. He was lying in something warm, and wet. His head was throbbing, and there was a sharp pain in his stomach. He groaned, before forcing himself to his hands and knees. He had been lying in blood. Riku's hand shot to his stomach, but found nothing wrong with it.

"Did Sora… heal me?" Riku whispered when he remembered what had happened.

_Riku darted forward and jumped up, trying to slice Roxas. The Keyblade-weilding Nobody brought his Keyblades up in defence, and they stabbed through Riku's stomach, causing him to scream in pain. _

"I did die…" Riku laughed, before clumsily getting to his feet. He glanced around for Way to the Dawn, finding it securely in Sam's hand. Her and Roxas were facing off, and they seemed pretty evenly matched. Roxas lashed out with his foot and caused Sam to fall backward, before raising his Keyblades to deal the final blow. Riku's hands shot out in front of him, as he thought of saving Sora from the Nobody.

Roxas sliced, and Sam braced herself…

Sam opened her eyes. Roxas had finished the motion, but his Keyblades weren't in his hands. She looked over at Riku, who was grinning smugly, Oathkeeper and Oblivion firmly in his hands. Roxas grunted in frustration.

"A complete heart is stronger than an incomplete one." Riku commented, swinging Roxas's Keyblades around casually.

"You died!" Roxas exclaimed. "You had no pulse… YOU'RE DEAD!" Riku shrugged.

"A friend helped me out. What can I say? Sam, ready to finish this Nobody?" He asked. She nodded in response, and the two charged at the same time. Sam got to Roxas first, slicing him as much as she could without killing him. Then Riku used Oathkeeper and Oblivion to form handcuffs, restraining Roxas's hands behind his back. The Keyblades all vanished. Sam and Riku dragged Roxas off quickly heading back to the hospital.

When they got there, everyone was in the lobby. Riku glanced around in confusion, before letting go of Roxas and starting to walk down the hall. His father stopped him.

"What the hell? Let me go see Sora!"

"No, Riku." His father said sternly. Riku tried to push past him, but his father grabbed his arm. When Riku tried pulling away, Sam handed Roxas to Rachael and grabbed the teen's other arm. Riku pulled, before finally managing to yank himself away from them. He had to know why they wouldn't let him see Sora.

He found out why when a loud, long 'beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep' reached his ears. Riku fell to his knees and slammed his fists into the floor.

"DAMN IT!" He cursed. His vision blurred, and he felt tears run down his face. He screamed in frustration, doubling over and crying. He heard people around him, some rubbing his back, others putting their hands on his shoulders, some trying to get his attention. "Why aren't you helping him? He's the friggin' Keyblade Master! DO SOMETHING!" He exclaimed. He heard several people shuffle off to Sora's room. This could not be happening… Sora could NOT die…

"Riku!"

He knew that voice. Someone kneeled in front of him, wrapping their arms around him. "Riku…"

He didn't respond right away. "Kairi… he can't die… it's not right…" He finally choked out.

"I know…"

Riku didn't pay any attention to what happened next. He felt himself being half-dragged, half-carried back to the lobby, and then placed in a car. He was always aware of someone next to him, trying to comfort him. The car stopped and he found himself being led up some stairs and laid down on a bed.

Eventually he fell asleep, wondering if they'd succeeded in reviving Sora…

* * *

Rachael sighed, shaking her head. "Roxas, _why?_" She repeated for what seemed like the few millionth time. Roxas just shrugged in response.

The two were sitting on the floor, in the corner of Sora's hospital room. Rachael was half-listening to the constant 'beep… beep… beep' signifying that Roxas hadn't tried to kill Sora again.

"Roxas, if you do not tell me, I will… throw you in liquid nitrogen or something!" She threatened. Roxas rolled his eyes.

"You should know why. I didn't leave the Organization to be near choked to death, given false memories and thrown into a false world then get my hopes and dreams shattered when your brother and that mad scientist made me fuse with Sora." Roxas wanted to cross his arms, but was unable to due to the handcuffs, which were attached to one of the chairs. Rachael sighed.

"Roxas, killing Sora because of Riku's mistakes is not good enough!" She exclaimed. Roxas didn't answer, causing Rachael to sigh in frustration and shoot to her feet. "I give up! You're not the same… I bet you only left Organization XIII to go find Xion, didn't you? Not because you wanted to figure out why the Keyblade chose you, but you wanted to find her and bring her back to the Organization again. Honestly, Roxas. I'm getting fed up." She sounded like an angry mother, which was quite the accomplishment for a ten year old.

Roxas, was staring up at her, gaping in shock. Rachael turned and stormed out of the room, frustrated.

Roxas sighed. "What have I done?" He muttered, looking at the ground.

"Well, judging by Rachael's sudden storming out of the room, I'd say a lot."

Roxas looked up to see Riku and Sora's father standing there.

"Come to give me a lecture, old man? I'm not in the mood, alright?"

"Whatever you say, Roxas. I just suggest maybe thinking about everything that's happened. Switch things around. I understand you had a trio of friends like Sora, Riku and Kairi, according to Rachael, anyway. You, some Axel guy and a girl named Xion, correct?"

Roxas nodded, unsure of where this guy was going.

"If you had been asleep until your memories could be repaired, but Kairi and Sora needed to be captured and reassembled as pieces of the puzzle, do you think Axel would've hunted them down for you?"

Roxas looked at the ground. He had a point. Axel would've done the same thing as Riku had.

"I am such an idiot!" Roxas growled, slamming his head against the wall.

"I'm glad we've established that. My work is done." With that, the silver-haired man turned and left the room, smiling the entire time.

* * *

Riku sat up, and rubbed his forehead. He had a mini-panic attack for a moment, in an unfamiliar room.

"Riku! Calm down!" Sam exclaimed, rushing over to his side and putting a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay; it's just a hotel room. Your house is still roped off with crime scene tape and what not." Riku nodded, feeling like an idiot.

"Sora…?" He whispered.

"Roxas gave him back enough of his heart for him to be revived. He's alive. Both my younger brothers are."

"Thank Kingdom Hearts…" Riku sighed. Sam smiled at him.

"You know, when we fought Roxas, I though I lost you there, Riku. I'd always known that you were my brother; I was around six or seven when we moved to the islands. My, _our, _mother made me swear not to tell a single person." Sam stroked his hair gently, before hugging him. She released him when her phone rang, and pulled a silver flip-phone from her pocket and flipping it open. "'Ello, Sam here… cool! We just have to make sure they won't kill each other." She sounded amused. "Yeah, I'll let him know! Talk to you later, Dad." She hung up.

"What did he want?" Riku asked her. Sam smiled at him.

"Sora's awake. Brush your hair; I'll meet you at the car." Sam left without another word.

Riku didn't need to be told twice. He quickly found his hairbrush in the bathroom, and quickly ran it through his hair, before bolting out the room door. He ran to the elevator, and went down to the ground floor before running more, zigzagging between the other people. He got outside, and found Sam waiting in the pick-up zone, leaning against a black Mazda 6.

"Get in." She motioned to the passenger side as she opened her door and slipped in. Riku did so without question.

Riku found himself getting restless during the car ride. Sam glanced over at him several times. When they got to the hospital, Riku jumped out before the car had even stopped. Sam laughed at him when he rolled on the ground, shaking her head. He glared at her before running off.

Most people were smart enough to get out of the way, others Riku had to weave around as he headed to Sora's room. He nearly slammed the door open when he reached it, collapsing onto his hands and knees.

"Someone ran a marathon."

Riku glanced up to see Sora smiling tiredly at him. His eyelids were drooping slightly, and he still had an IV in his arm, but was otherwise fine. Riku got up and walked over, hugging his brother.

"You saved me… I know you did." He whispered.

"Yes, I did." Sora replied, hugging his brother back with one arm, not wanting to pull on the IV. "You saved me, too." Riku smiled as the two released each other.

"It's good to see you awake finally." He commented. Sora nodded in response, before looking over where the chairs were placed. Riku followed his gaze, spotting the spiky haired blond sitting there, in his normal clothing, the grey pants, black sleeveless zip shirt and white jacket with the checker pattern. No the outfit of an enemy, the Organization XIII cloak.

"Roxas…" Riku bit his lip, resisting the urge to cuss out the blond. Roxas muttered something that he didn't catch. "Mind repeating that, I didn't hear you." He requested. The Nobody sighed and looked up at the ceiling.

"I said I am sorry for being an idiotic jerk that didn't realise what you were trying to do when you nearly killed me and all that other crap."

Riku mentally laughed, spotting Rachael's smug grin out of the corner of his eye.

"Might want to improve your grammar, Rache." Riku suggested. Rachael shrugged.

"Oh well."

"Anyway, I understand partially, Roxas." Riku shrugged, not wanting to apologize further. Roxas smiled, knowing that was probably all he was going to get out of his Somebody's older brother.

"Well, then, the trio is united, then! This is perfect… maybe we can make it official this time." Sora and Riku's father commented. The Keyblader Trio all gave him a puzzled look. "Normally there is a big ceremony to make the three Keybladers the official rulers and guardians of the worlds, then a big celebration afterward. Also, Kairi hasn't had her official coronation, either…"

Riku saw Kairi try to hide behind Sam, who had since entered the room. Sam side-stepped, and Kairi followed her, causing Roxas, Sora and Riku to laugh at her.

"I'll call King Mickey, maybe we can arrange something." Sora and Riku's father commented.

"Well, I can wait." Sora rested his hands behind his head and laid down on the bed, seeing his father leave the room out of the corner of his eye. "So… other than you getting killed, Riku, what's been going on lately?"

Riku inhaled sharply, before exhaling again. He then took another breath and began to tell Sora every. Small. Detail.


	12. Chapter 12

Author's notes: Alright, I need help. I have an idea in my head for a sequel, but it's a KH/pre-FF12 crossover. It's that, or I have an epilogue in mind that I can post. It's up to you guys. No, this isn't the last chapter, so don't panic. I'm just asking now so I might get some opinions before the end of this. This is more of a filler chapter as things start coming together towards the end, by the way.

**Abused**

Sora pulled his arm across his chest, stretching. He had been out of the hospital for a day now, and he needed to get his strength back up. He still felt weak, though, because Roxas required part of his heart to remain solid. He called the Kingdom Key and sliced at the air, but stumbled. Riku was quick to dart forward and catch him. Riku sat him down on the sand, having a hand behind his back to steady him.

"Still a bit uneasy?" Riku asked. Sora nodded, his eyes distant and sleepy. He had tried to fight with wooden swords, the Keyblade and a stick with similar results. The sun was setting, and Sora and Riku had been training since dawn. "Let's head home, alright?" Sora nodded tiredly. The elder picked up the younger brother, who rested his head against his shoulder and closed his eyes. Riku began walking towards the docks, and gently placed the half asleep Keyblade Master in the boat. He got in and began paddling back to the mainland.

Once they got to the docks on the mainland, Riku tied the boat up before picking up Sora, who had fallen asleep, and walking towards Sora's, their, house. He'd let the brunette sleep until dinner.

Riku went to open the door, and found it locked. He frowned, and rang the doorbell. No answer. He sat Sora against the wall and reached into his pocket for his keys, finding only his phone. He searched his other pocket and sighed, grabbing his phone and calling his dad's mobile.

"_Hello?" _

"Hey, dad, I'm currently outside the house. The door's locked and I left my keys inside this morning."

"_Well that was stupid." _

"No need to rub it in. Where are you, anyway?"

"_Fish and chips shop. I left a note on the kitchen table but it's a bit hard to read when you forget your keys." _

Riku rolled his eyes at his father's smug tone. "Yeah yeah, I said you don't need to rub it in. I'll come down as quickly as possible."

"_Where's Sora?" _

"Sitting beside me… asleep."

"_Figures. See you in a few." _

"Yep, see you." Riku replied before hanging up and putting his phone away. He felt like the biggest idiot in the world right now. He picked Sora up again and headed for the bus stop. Once there he waited for route 3, the one that went past the fish and chip shop. When the bus arrived, he quickly jumped on.

"Ah! The Keyblade brothers!" The diver exclaimed. Riku smiled and nodded. The Keyblade brothers were what a lot of the islanders had began to call Sora and Riku since they had told the entire islands about the Keyblades. The bus driver eyed Sora. "He pass out 'gain?" Riku nodded.

"Yeah, he's still getting used to being separate from Roxas." Riku explained, before setting in the seat behind the driver. He sat Sora in the window seat, leaning him against the wall. "Fish and chip shop, please."

"'Ight," was the response as the bus started moving.

A few minutes later the bus stopped outside the fish and chip shop, so Riku picked up Sora and began to leave. "Make sure you make me pay you back, alright?" He told the bus driver as he got off. He then walked across the road to the fish and chips shop, quickly spotting his father, Sam, Roxas and Rachael sitting at a table. Sam looked up and called his name, so he sped up.

He stopped beside the table, and sat Sora down in a spare seat. "Sorry it took so long. The bus was behind schedule, but it would've been longer walking."

"It's fine, Riku. How's Sora?" His father asked.

"Still getting used to being separated. He can manage simple stretches but the moment he grabbed a weapon and swung he fell." Riku replied. Roxas had turned Sora's chair and had placed his index fingers on Sora's temples, watching the Keyblade Master closely. Riku watched. Roxas pulled his hands back, and swayed slightly before sitting back down in his own chair. Sora's eyes fluttered open, and he mumbled something as he glanced around sleepily.

"Hey, you okay?" Riku asked.

"Guess so…" Sora mumbled in response. "When'd we get here?"

"Just now." Riku replied. "You passed out on the way." His younger brother nodded in response.

"Sam, go help Kairi with the food." Their father sighed. Sam glanced inside, muttered something about how he could see inside, and got up. She returned, Kairi following. They both had two packages of paper, which they placed on the table.

"You know what I just realised, Sora, Riku?" Kairi asked as she started eating. The two boys looked up from their food. "Neither of you have accidentally used any magic in awhile."

"That's great! But that means…" Sora put his potato scallop down, and lowered his head. Riku put down his fish and wiped his hands off, before patting Sora's back. He saw a tear run down Sora's face.

"Hey, it's okay. If she didn't, I'm sure the worlds would end up in chaos, with all the magic everyone uses these days. She knew that, so she gave her life for our cause." He tried to comfort Sora, who just nodded and went back to his food.

"Riku, quick question."

Riku looked at Roxas.

"How the hell does a _Keyblader _get locked out of his own house?"

Riku's head met the table with a loud THUNK.

"I was wondering when he'd figure that out." His father commented, sounding very amused. Kairi laughed, shaking her head and sighing. "That was why you left the keys behind, Riku."

"It was?"

"Do you have heatstroke or something?"

"Apparently."

"You've been hanging out with Sora too much, Riku." Roxas commented.

"GEE! Thanks, Roxas!" Sora exclaimed.

"You're very welcome." The Nobody replied. Sora rolled his eyes.

Once they finished eating, Sam frowned and counted everyone there. "Me, Rachael, Kairi, Sora, Riku, Roxas, and Dad… we only brought one car… with five seats"

"Oh dear." Her father commented, frowning. "I'll walk. Anyone else coming?"

"I will!" Rachael volunteered. He nodded.

"Alright. See you all at home." He and Rachael stood before they began walking off. Riku stood and threw out their trash, before helping Sora up. The Keyblade Master swayed for a moment, before falling forwards. Riku caught him before picking him up. They headed to Sam's black Mazda, and Riku sat Sora in the middle seat, letting him lean against him. Kairi called shotgun, so Roxas ended up in the back with Sora and Riku. Sam drove.

When they got back to the house, Roxas unlocked the door. Sora and Riku were sharing a room now, because Sam wanted her's back. Riku took Sora upstairs and into their room. There was now a bunk instead of a normal bed. The older brother climbed up top after laying Sora down on the bottom bunk. He fell asleep staring at the ceiling.


	13. Chapter 13

Author's notes: This brings an end to Abused. Next up is 'Missed' (Post Kingdom Hearts II and pre-Final Fantasy XII) and I have some ideas for a trilogy. It is kind of sitting on a wall, though. It has to do with suicidal emotions ('emo' thoughts) and stuff, so I'm not sure if I'm actually going to do it… it's up to the readers that are still following by the end. If you don't want me to do that one, I have a backup I can do instead.

This has 13 chapters. GO ROXAS! 8D

**Abused**

Roxas flipped, landing behind Sora. "Too slow." He commented, holding Oblivion to the back of his Somebody's neck. Sora had been released from hospital a month ago, and he was starting to get his strength back. Everyone else was there, too. Sam, Rachael, their father, Kairi, Tidus and the rest. Riku sighed.

"Roxas, we agreed to go _easy _on him. Or do you not know the meaning of that?" Riku rolled his eyes, before seeing Sora sway and his balance falter. Riku dropped Way to the Dawn and caught Sora as he collapsed.

"My head." Sora complained.

"We just gave you some pain meds half an hour ago, Sora. We can't give you any more without risking the effects of an overdose. Lay down, it might go away." Riku sighed. Sora nodded, slowly rose to his feet and walked over to the others. Sam forced him to lie down and put a hand gently on his forehead.

Riku and Roxas continued to spar, Riku getting frustrated that no matter what he tried, Roxas had a trump card up his sleeve. No way was Riku going to use Darkness in a friendly match, either. He looked around. _Aha. _He smirked.

Riku did a triple backflip, landing on the bent-over tree behind everyone. Roxas tensed, waiting for what the teen was planning. Riku flipped again, gripping onto the trunk of a palm tree. He climbed up so he was sitting on top of it. One wrong step and he was going to fall. Way to the Dawn vanished as he collected coconuts.

"Hey, Roxas!" He called. The Nobody looked at him.

"What?"

"You know more people are killed by falling coconuts than by sharks each year?" Riku asked.

"Yeah, so?"

That was all Roxas managed before he got several coconuts thrown at him. One smacked up square on the forehead, causing him to collapse. Riku jumped out of the tree and landed beside him, Way to the Dawn in hand and pointed at Roxas's throat.

"I win." He smirked.

"Damn." Roxas laughed. Almost everyone else was laughing at Riku's improvise; Sora's head hurt too much to bother.

A few hour later, Sora was back on his feet with Keyblade in hand. The three continued to spar, and everyone looked shocked when the Kingdom Key was pointed at Riku's throat, ending the fight. Roxas had sat out. Everyone looked at each other, and then started laughing excitedly. Riku rolled out from under the Kingdom Key and jumped up, pulling Sora into a hug.

"Great job!" He complimented as he released his younger brother. Sora laughed, smiling.

"Thanks."

"Well, then, I guess I can call King Mickey and tell him that you've recovered." Their father smiled. The brothers nodded. Sam walked over and pulled the two into a gentle hug. Neither put up a fight; Riku was too exhausted to bother, and Sora couldn't give a damn. When Sam released them, she smiled at Sora.

"Good to have you back." She commented.

* * *

Sora stretched again. This was getting boring. The three Keybladers were standing outside the throne room in Disney Castle. It had been a month since Sora had returned to full strength, just enough time to plan out the official ceremony. Everyone else was inside. All three were nervous as hell, although they tried not to show it. Everyone of importance in the worlds, along with some of Sora's friends, such as the Restoration Committee etcetera, had come for the ceremony.

You wouldn't think by looking at them they were ready for an official ceremony. They were wearing the clothing they had worn during their last inter-world adventure; Sora the clothes the fairies had given him, Riku his white vest, black, sleeve-less zip shirt and baggy blue pants, and Roxas his Twilight Town clothing.

The three were positioned in a triangle, facing each other boredly. Riku had long since sat down, Sora was stretching and Roxas wasn't doing anything. He was the only one who had an empty expression, using his traits as a Nobody to not be bored, anxious or nervous.

_Lucky bastard. _Riku thought. He'd do anything not to feel bored right now.

A loud knock on the door sounded that the ceremony was about to begin. The three of them turned to face the door, and emotions returned to Roxas's face. He appeared to be more serious than anything else.

Sora's hand strayed over his crown pendant. There had been four gems placed on it. On the point furthest to Sora's left (our right when looking straight at the pendant) was a purple amethyst. In the middle was a blue sapphire, and on Sora's right (left when looking straight at the pendant) was a white crystal. In the middle of the pendant was the largest of the four gems, a canary yellow diamond. The three smaller gems glowed faintly. He wore the Keychain to the Kingdom Key around his right wrist like a bracelet.

Roxas, who was behind and to the right of Sora, was wearing a leather grey wristband on his right arm. It had the chakram from the Bond of Flame Keychain on the top of it. He was wearing the Oblivion Keychain as a bracelet on his right hand, Oathkeeper on his left. In the middle of the chakram, a blue sapphire had been placed.

Riku was also wearing a leather wrist band, this one on his left arm. His was black, decorated with a large purple amethyst. He was wearing the Soul Eater Keychain around his right wrist, having accepted that his weapon was of the Darkness, not the Twilight. Way to the Dawn had turned back into Soul Eater.

The doors opened and the three walked in calmly. At one point Sora's pendant, Riku and Roxas's wristbands all began to glow. Starting at their feet, some weird armour began to form. It stopped at the base of their necks. (Think of Terra, Aqua and Ven's armour. It's a similar style.)

Sora's was golden, with blue a blue stripe down his right arm, a purple stripe down his left. He also had a gold cape with silver embroidery around the edges. A sword belt, a silver color, was around his waist, and on the left side of the belt the Kingdom Key rested.

Roxas's was blue, with a sky blue cape and navy embroidery. He resisted the urge to look over the armour, and blocked out the emotions that caused curiosity, as he had the ones that caused nervousness. His sword belt was navy. On the right was Oathkeeper, the left Oblivion.

Riku's was black, and his cape was a dark purple, the edges seemed frayed at first glance, but upon closer inspection, were stitched to look that way. The embroidery was silver. His sword belt was the same shade of purple as his cape, with Soul Eater to his left. The three stopped before the throne room, lowering themselves to one knee. Sora braved a glance around. He spotted the Seven Princesses of Heart, all dressed in fancy clothing. He almost had to do a double take at Kairi, who was wearing a fancy, sleeve-less red dress which touched the floor. Sora would bet money that she was wearing sneakers and not high-heels. She was also wearing a fancy gold circlet upon her head.

Beside the Princesses of Heart was the Radiant Garden Reconstruction Committee. No surprise that they were there. Also along the walls were a decent amount of King Mickey's Musketeers. Some other people Sora had met in the various worlds he had visited, Mulan, Shang and the Emperor from the Land of the Dragons, Simba and Nala from the Pride Lands, both were still lions; Sora probably wouldn't have recognised them otherwise. He noticed Roxas staring in particular direction, so he followed his glance and spotted Hayner, Pence and Olette.

_That's something I didn't expect, but, then again, they were involved in the incident with the Nobodies, so they have all right to be here. _He thought.

He also spotted Peter Pan, Hercules and Phil, Aladdin and Genie and Beast. There were also many people he didn't recognise. Standing on either side of the throne were Donald and Goofy, both looking some what proud. In front of the throne was King Mickey, and Sora and Riku's father. Sora felt his heartbeat quicken as he looked his father in the eyes. He got a smile in return.

"You've done well, my son." His father whispered. Sora smiled, before he called the Kingdom Key to his hand and passed it to his father, who took it and tapped it on either shoulder. "In the names of the worlds, and in my own as Keyblade Master, I pass my title on to you, my youngest son. Take your weapon." Sora called the Kingdom Key back to him, and stabbed it into the floor in front of him. He rested his hands on the hand guard. His father stepped aside and bowed to King Mickey. "Your majesty," he said.

Mickey stepped forwards, his own Keyblade in his hand. Sora noticed that his pendant materialized, wrapped around the Kingdom Key's hand guard. The King tapped it lightly with his Keyblade. "Keybearer of Light," he walked over to Roxas. He and Riku had both stabbed their Keyblades into the ground before then. The hilts of Oblivion and Oathkeeper were crossed over each other, and the wristband materialized where they crossed. King Mickey tapped it. "Keybearer of Twilit," he then walked to Riku, whose wristband was on Soul Eater. He tapped it, too. "Keybearer of Darkness," he finished, walking back towards the throne.

"The three of you are the guardians of the worlds, known and unknown. You will explore new worlds, and protect them. I will lend assistance where required, but the task of protecting the worlds falls to the shoulders of you three. Be strong in your trails, work together, and find your individual strengths." He stepped back, and Sora and Riku's father took over.

"You three, do you promise to fulfil this task to the best of your abilities?"

They nodded.

"Do you promise not to destroy the worlds?"

Another nod (Riku knew that this would've been targeting past Keybearers of Darkness in the past).

"Do you promise to help maintain balance between the Light, Twilight and Darkness?"

Another nod.

"Then may you be connected for all eternity."

Sora, Riku and Roxas all stood, and pulled their Keyblades from the ground. They turned to face each other, and held their Keyblades out so the tips of all of them touched. A light formed in the small gap. Sora, Roxas and Riku all closed their eyes calmly. The light expanded until everyone else had to shelter their eyes.

When the light faded, Sora swayed, but didn't collapse. Riku and Roxas had grabbed his arms to steady him. He had felt another connection formed in his heart, in addition to the one he already had to Kairi, and the one he had with Roxas. Riku had a tired look in his eyes for a moment, but it quickly faded. Sora recovered, and stood straight again and laughed.

The next thing the three noticed was the marks on their foreheads. Sora had the symbol of Kingdom Hearts on his forehead in gold, Roxas had the Nobody insignia in blue, and Riku had the Heartless symbol.

"Don't worry – the marks go away when you deactivate the armour." Sora and Riku's father assured them. The three nodded.

There was silence for a moment, before a cheer ran through the crowd. Sora, Roxas and Riku were all bombarded by Kairi, Sam and Rachael. Roxas ruffled the youngest's hair, and Riku gave his younger sister a hug. Kairi had nearly knocked Sora over when she hugged him. He laughed and returned the gesture. He spotted her sneakers for a split second.

"There are so many people here, most of them you've never mentioned, Sora."

"Most of them I don't know." He laughed in response. Everyone looked at Roxas, who was watching Hayner's gang. "Go on, introduce yourself, Roxas." Sora urged. Roxas glanced back, before he nodded.

"Fine, I will." With that, Roxas ran off.

Everyone continued to mingle and celebrate for awhile. Roxas made quick friends with the Twilight Town group, at the same time meeting various officials from the different worlds. Sora and Riku were also introduced to everyone, as well. Most said that they hoped that the three would visit their world under circumstances not involving Darkness. This comment continued to tick Riku off. At one point his father had to pull out of the throne room and sit him down outside.

"Where's Riku?" Sora questioned.

"I sat him outside; his temper was going to get the better of him soon. He needs time to cool off; he's finally accepted the Darkness and everyone's still prejudice about it."

Sora nodded.

After awhile, Riku still hadn't returned, so Sora went out to check on him. He found the teenager asleep on the floor. He laughed and shook his brother awake. Riku sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"How long have I been out here for?"

"Long enough; come on." Sora pulled Riku to his feet.

The two re-entered the throne room. Riku froze, watching a woman with silvery-red hair. Her eyes were a blue-green color. She was in her early twenties. Her clothing wasn't that you'd see at a fancy ceremony. She was wearing black jeans, with many black leather belts looping, crossing and overlapping each other. She was wearing a sleeve-less zip-shirt that looked _exactly _like Riku's. Over the top she was wearing a blue vest. Her hair reached her shoulders, and was cut so that it looked spiked at the bottom.

"New recruit for the Restoration Committee?" He asked Sora, since they were the only ones out of dress code. They had all right to be, they had to continue rebuilding parts of Radiant Garden right after this. Sora shook his head.

"Not as far as I know." He replied.

"She's creeping me out." Riku commented as they continued. "She's watching me."

"Leera!"

The woman's attention was diverted.

"Oh, hello, Rachael. I didn't expect to see you here."

_She knows Rachael? _Riku thought, watching Rachael talk with the woman, who she had called Leera. He walked over.

"Rachael, who's this?" He asked his sister. She looked up at him.

"Oh, this is Leera, she helped me escape the World that Never Was. Leera, this is my brother, Riku." Rachael introduced them. Riku held his hand out, and Leera shook it hesitantly.

"Pleasure, I'm sure." She said dully. It was obvious that she didn't mean it. She yanked her hand back and walked off. "Leran, we're leaving!"

"She's not normally so rude…" Rachael commented.

"Maybe she hates the Darkness, too." Riku sighed.

"'EY! Riku, Roxas! Get over here!"

Riku walked over to Sora. "What's up?"

Sora put his hand out in front of him. Roxas and Riku both laughed, putting their hands on top of his. Donald, Goofy, King Mickey and Sora and Riku's father joined in next, then Kairi, and anyone else who could fit. Anyone else either stretched over the top or just reached out in front of them.

Sora called out when everyone was ready.

"All for one!"

"**And one for all**!"


End file.
